500,000 HANG UP ON POLICE 101 CALLS
Outrage as 40% of people trying to report a crime fail to get answer from cop hotline
MORE than half a million calls to a police hotline to report crimes have gone unanswered in the past year amid a growing crisis in response times.
In one month alone, 70,000 people hung up the phone when unable to get through to the police’s 101 number. In some cases, people phoning to report concerns have had to wait for more than an hour.
It means that thousands of Scots who have suffered from crime, or want to pass on intelligence, are being left unable to contact police. Now there are fears that the delays to the non-urgent hotline will prompt people to dial 999 instead and swamp the emergency-only number.
The figures, which have dramatically worsened in recent months, have sparked calls for action from the Scottish Government. Figures for June, the
most recent to be published, show 170,782 calls were made to Police Scotland’s 101 number.
However, 71,505 – the equivalent of 40 per cent – gave up before speaking to anyone.
The average wait was five minutes and 17 seconds. In the worst case, one person waited for one hour and eight seconds to speak to someone.
The problem appears to have worsened significantly.
In the same month last year, there were 173,982 calls, but just 39,054 were disconnected.
The average wait was less than half as long, at two minutes and five seconds, and the longest wait was 31 minutes and seven seconds.
Over the course of the past 12 months, 571,353 calls have gone unanswered, with Police Scotland struggling to cope with the effects of the Covid crisis, physical distancing in call centres, and staff being ordered to self-isolate.
The figures were also worse than they had been in previous months this year.
MSP Jamie Greene, Scots Tory justice spokesman, said: ‘It’s shocking that people
calling the police are having to wait double the length of time as last year.
‘Years of SNP cuts and underfunding of Police Scotland has left officers without the resources to help the public as quickly as they used to.
‘The SNP need to get a grip and get this sorted before it leads to serious incidents being missed.’
Pauline McNeill MSP, Scots Labour health spokesman, added: ‘These appalling figures expose a system that is simply not coping.
‘People will not be making these calls lightly so to be left waiting over an hour, if they are lucky enough to speak to anyone at all, is unacceptable.’
Police Scotland, like other organisations, has had reduced capacity in offices due to social distancing and has also been hit by staff self-isolating.
Chief Superintendent Roddy Newbigging, divisional commander for contact, command and control, said: ‘Police Scotland receives around two million non-emergency 101 calls each year.
‘In the financial year 2020/21, the average time to answer an emergency 999 call was eight seconds, and a non-emergency 101 call was two minutes and 30 seconds.
Emergency 999 calls will always be our priority.
‘When calling 101, callers are advised to end the call and dial 999 if they are experiencing an emergency, or the incident is escalating.
‘This year has been exceptionally challenging for everyone. Our dedicated staff have come into work during a very difficult time to answer calls.’
The Scottish Government has imposed swingeing cuts on policing in recent years, with an estimated £2 billion to be stripped out of the force’s finances by 2026. However,
‘SNP needs to get a grip and get it sorted’ ‘Waiting more than an hour unacceptable’
there was an increase in funding in the Scottish Government’s budget this year.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘We continue to be hugely grateful to Police Scotland’s staff for keeping their call handling service functioning and efficient during this difficult period.
‘Despite constraints on Scotland’s public services through a decade of UK austerity, policing services have been maintained and improved.
‘The Scottish Government has invested over £10 billion in policing since the creation of Police Scotland in 2013.’