COP26 will not diminish local policing, vows chief
The senior officer for Highlands and Islands police has assured Lochaber residents they will receive the ‘same high standard of service’, despite the fact a number of local officers are joining others from across Scotland in Glasgow for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), writes Mark Entwistle.
Giving the regular monthly police briefing for Kilmallie Community Council’s monthly meeting last week, PC Paige MacDonald said all of the country’s forces were gearing up for COP26.
And she added: ‘There’s a few going from Fort William, so there’s a lot of work around that.’
Asked to comment, Police Scotland said it could not confirm the exact numbers of its officers being deployed from each division to cover COP26 – which started on Sunday – due to operational reasons.
However, Chief Superintendent Conrad Trickett, Divisional Commander for Highland and Islands Division, speaking ahead of last Sunday’s start of COP26, told the Lochaber Times: ‘A considerable part of our planning for COP26 has been to ensure that the communities of Scotland continue to receive the same high standard of service from policing they have come to expect.
‘Policing, so often the service of first and last resort, will never step away from people in crisis.
‘There are pressures which exist across many other services, agencies and sectors, and when the health service, local authorities and other key partners come under significant strain, demand is diverted to policing. However, Police Scotland prioritises emergency 999 calls and these are answered within less than 10 seconds, on average. Our non-emergency response times continue to be affected by high demand.
‘While an event the size of COP26 places considerable demands on policing, we already have contingencies in place and are taking steps to boost those over the coming weeks.’
And Chief Superintendent Trickett added: ‘Although there is potential for further disruption should pressure on other agencies and services persist and become more acute, particularly as the country prepares for COP26, I can reassure the public that if they need an emergency response from us they will get it.’