Keep the facts in mind on police restructure

Sir, – Jim Shaw (Letters, November 29) expresses his dissatisfaction with the single, Scotland-wide police service created by the SNP.

He is right to raise such concerns, but while attacking the Scottish Government’s record on policing, misses some important facts.

A unified, single force was proposed by all the major parties during the 2011 Scottish election.

This should be borne in mind the next time they complain that the SNP knowingly broke the “rules” regarding VAT payments.

Mr Shaw is also unhappy that Justice Secretary Michael Matheson confirmed that it would be inappropriate for government to intervene in police management, a response he believes to be “downright dishonest”.

Yet he contradicts himself later by claiming the SNP set up the single force, “for no other reason than to centrally control the police service”.

His other bizarre claim is that the whole exercise was simply a means to ensure that our police force is recognised as ‘Scottish’, making one wonder which title would have been used had the unionist Holyrood group succeeded in 2011.

‘North British’, perhaps?

Mr Shaw then goes into SNP/BAD overdrive with his claim the service is “disintegrating” and is being “murdered” by the SNP.

The huge restructuring of the police force in Scotland was never going to be a straightforward exercise. However, it is, even under present conditions, the best performing service in these islands, with the amalgamation saving £130 million a year.

A welcome achievement during these Tory austerity years. Ken Clark. 335 King Street, Broughty Ferry, Dundee.

The restructuring of the police force is not a straightforward exercise.