The number of police officers in Scotland has fallen slightly in the last three months.

Quarterly statistics show there were 17,267 officers on September 30, compared with 17,318 on June 30.

The number still meets the Scottish Government's target of maintaining an additional 1,000 officers on 2007 figures.

The figures show that on September 30 this year there were 1,033 more police officers in Scotland than there were on March 31, 2007.

The number of officers has fluctuated above 17,200 since early 2009.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said: "Recorded crime is at a 39-year low, while this Government is continuing to deliver on our commitment to put 1,000 additional police officers in communities. We have met this commitment in every quarter since 2011.

"This is in direct contrast to the picture in England and Wales where police numbers have fallen to their lowest level since 2001 and are expected to drop by more than 15,000 in total."