Chief thanks officers, staff and public for their support

At a meeting in Glasgow, the Chief praised the good sense of our communities during periods of violence and disorder in other parts of the United Kingdom.

The Chief also thanked officers and staff who contributed to Police Scotland's response throughout the period, including officers who deployed following a mutual aid request from the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

During a wide-ranging input, the Chief also underlined our ongoing plans to recruit 1300 officers during 2024-25 and highlighted our enforcement and partnership work to reduce and address the harm of illegal drugs.

Chief Constable Farrell also praised key collaborations including work at the Scottish Crime Campus; the national roll-out of the Digitally Enabled Sharing Capability (DESC); and an effective approach to policing's response to mental health incidents in Lanarkshire.

During the meeting, Deputy Chief Constable Jane Connors said the implementation of Body Worn Video continued at pace following the award of a contract to equip over 10,000 officers and staff.

DCC Connors said: "In June we appointed the supplier for body worn video, a major step forward and progress continues to be driven at pace to ensure we can upgrade the network and this is why it follows the DESC system, because upgrading the network for DESC means we are able to follow that rollout with the Body Worn Video system.

“The DESC and Body Worn Video teams work together as do the suppliers, as they are complementary systems to ensure that Body Worn Video can be shared effectively though the criminal justice system and benefits are maximised.

“We expect the system to be deployed and active in Spring 2025 for the first tranche of over 10,000 officers and staff and they will be equipped over the next 12 months following a coordinated, sequenced rollout with its links to DESC.

"It is a very complex programme of work and it is progressing at pace and we have put lot of focus on it. It will revolutionise the way we support officers and staff, the way we support victims and witnesses and feed into that wider criminal justice reform that is so essential for creating capacity for our officers and staff and justice for victims."

Read the Chief Constable's input below -

I want to thank our communities for their support and good sense during a challenging time which has seen appalling violence and disorder in parts of the United Kingdom.

Our thoughts are with the individuals and communities who have been affected in recent weeks and with our brave colleagues from across UK policing who have put themselves in harm's way to protect the public.

We continue to be closely in touch with other police services and have provided mutual aid support, a valuable principle in UK policing which is balanced against the needs of policing in Scotland.

On Monday of this week, I thanked officers who deployed to support colleagues after we responded to a mutual aid request from the Police Service of Northern Ireland and initial feedback around arrangements and their welfare was very positive.

I want to thank all officers and staff who contributed to our response.

During the period, I met with the First Minister John Swinney MSP, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice Angela Constance MSP, Community Safety Minister Siobhian Brown MSP and Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray MP to brief them on our response. Chair, you were also fully briefed by myself and other Chief Officers on a regular basis.

As Chief Constable, my priority continues to be the safety and security of the people of Scotland, including our officers and staff.

Policing in Scotland has strong relationships with the public and we deeply value our role in contributing to the important social cohesion which has been evident here.

I encourage everyone to be responsible in their use of social media - please do not share speculation or inaccurate information. Think twice about what you read, share and believe from online sources.

During this time, we increased our patrols and engaged directly with communities to offer reassurance and support. As part of this, I was pleased to meet with community groups, including the Scottish Refugee Council, Interfaith Scotland, and various ethnic and faith groups and individuals in Glasgow so I was able to listen to their perspectives first hand.

We are closely monitoring the situation to ensure any potential for violence or disorder in Scotland is identified quickly and responded to immediately.

Our role is to ensure public safety while balancing the rights of protesters who wish to peacefully demonstrate.

And we have sent a clear and consistent message that any violence and disorder that is not legitimate protest will be dealt with swiftly and robustly.

The policing demand associated with the violence and disorder comes during a busy summer of events including festivals, sporting events, music concerts and a general election.

I am grateful to the many officers and staff who have been involved in planning or providing the support required to allow our communities to go about their business and leisure or exercise their democratic and human rights.

An effective, appropriately resourced, police service able to support law and order is therefore a pre-requisite for the social cohesion and economic development necessary for Scotland to thrive and flourish.

At the same time, Police Scotland continues to tackle threat, harm and risk and my report reflects significant court outcomes achieved following police investigations into murder and violent and sexual crimes, as well as convictions for drug dealing.

National Records of Scotland statistics published this week are a powerful reminder of the human tragedy caused by drug addiction and we work hard to ensure Scotland remains a hostile environment for those who import illegal drugs and deal in misery and death.

My report highlights drug recoveries by officers since the last Scottish Police Authority Board – and this is vital work to prevent illegal substances from entering our communities.

Of course, this is only a selection of the seizures, disruption and enforcement undertaken right across the country day in, day out, but it is important the Authority has a sense of the type of day-to-day policing that is ongoing and which is a priority for Police Scotland.

At the same time, we support a health-led partnership approach to tackling the harm presented by substance addiction – whether that's officers administering Nalaxone when first on scene at a suspected opioid overdose, or taking a supportive stance on the establishment of a safer drug consumption facility.

Throughout the summer, we've continued our focus on road safety through education and enforcement and, working with partners, reducing the tragedy and harm of road deaths and injuries continues to be an absolute priority for policing.

Closer, more effective, work with partners is vital for the ongoing success of policing and the safety and wellbeing of our communities.

My report outlines important examples of such work which have been illustrated in recent weeks, including the 10 year anniversary event at the Scottish Crime Campus to tackle organised crime; the national roll-out of the Digital Evidence Sharing Capability to better serve victims and witnesses, improve criminal justice efficiency and reduce demand on officers; and the fantastic work in Lanarkshire, which we discussed earlier.

Such developments are a crucial part of the necessary changes to ensure Police Scotland can provide effective policing within the funding available, particularly in relation to reducing the unsustainable demand on officers who are repeatedly cited for court cases which do not go ahead. I have been clear, I do not believe this is fair or efficient, and reform must be prioritised and accelerated.

Working closely with the support and oversight of the Authority, we continue to make progress on a revised model of policing so our Service meets its future challenges.

Of course, our workforce profile will be an important aspect of those discussions and my position on officer numbers remains clear that I want to bring the frontline of policing to its strongest position possible.

We are recruiting officers now and we welcomed over 250 probationary constables last month as part of plans to recruit over 1300 officers during 2024-25, the highest number in a single year for Police Scotland. Last Friday, I congratulated 115 probationary constables as they prepared to deploy to serve communities across Scotland following the completion of their initial training.

It is important that together, we continue to be clear that the context of frontline strength goes way beyond an overall officer headcount and it is important we continue to maximise experienced officers performing frontline, operational policing in our communities.

And at the same time, policing in Scotland has worked over a period of years to strengthen our financial rigour and I remain committed to delivering on a balanced budget.

My report highlights my thanks to the Independent Review Group

Lastly, I continue to greatly enjoy meeting officers, staff and partners around Scotland to hear directly from them and in recent weeks.

Last month, I met with officers on Shetland and Orkney, during which I was briefed on our work with Dogs Against Drugs on our joint work to deter and detect illegal drugs entering the islands. I also met with MSP Beatrice Wishart, the Chief Executive of Orkney Islands Council Oliver Reid, NHS Orkney Chief Executive Laura Skaife-Knight as well as local councillors.

Last week, I met with officers at our Marine and Dive Unit and Air Support Unit in Glasgow during which I was able to listen to how drones are deployed to respond to incidents and how, ultimately, they help to save lives.

Drones are a low cost, sustainable asset that improve our ability to search large areas and decrease the risk faced by officers in difficult environments. They can provide an overview for crowd safety at events and aerial imagery for evidence use at court.

Over a number of years, we've built a strong relationship with the Civil Aviation Authority. Our ambition is to provide an accessible and agile service across the whole of Scotland, using the right air asset for the right type of task, be it a drone or helicopter, in order to provide the best value and benefit to our communities.

During a visit to Glenrothes, I also had the opportunity to congratulate and thank six-year-old Anthony Green as he completed visits to over 50 police stations to raise almost £2000 for the Police Benevolent Fund.