For some the argument must seem academic � whether Scotland has one police force or eight, and who should tackle issues such as counter- terrorism.
For some the argument must seem academic - whether Scotland has one police force or eight, and who should tackle issues such as counter- terrorism.
Ultimately though, the governance and structures binding and defining Scotland's police forces and emergency services could change who answers the phone if you've been burgled, and how national threats are handled.
While the chief constables may disagree about what those structures should be, there is growing consensus that a debate needs to be had soon to tackle perceived "gaps" in vitally important areas such as tackling serious organised crime.
"The debate ultimately is national policing units versus community focus at a local level," said Colin McKerracher, the president of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland for the past two years.
"Chief Constables agree that there are gaps in certain protective services primarily around intelligence, surveillance and some emerging new crime trends, like fraud, trafficking and e-crime.
"The obvious answer is greater and new investment in counter-terrorism and serious organised crime, as has been the case in England and Wales. If this is not forthcoming, then we need greater co-ordination, collaboration and the more flexible use of current resources to meet those national risks." Acpos has now established different working groups to look at those gaps.
The chief constable of Grampian, Mr McKerracher is the latest to join this controversial debate, but does not agree with all of his colleagues and even warned of the "threat" posed by those "who want to do their own thing".
In his 35 years as a police officer, he said, the public have always related to their local force and their chief constable - a view expected to be seen as being at odds with that expressed by the chief constable of Strathclyde.
"I would suggest that the people in Dumfries, Aberdeen, Inverness and in Edinburgh, will have something to say if their police force is removed without good cause. People outwith the central belt fear the draw on resources from across Scotland."
To address growing demands from counter terrorism and organised crime, he believes ministers need to increase significantly resources in these areas without removing them from frontline policing.
Mr McKerracher also called for the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) to be "governed by chief constables and police boards". Currently the agency is maintained by the Scottish Police Services Authority - a move instituted two years ago under new legislation and heavily criticised since.
The SPSA was created to provide efficiency savings, support services, IT and procurement for all forces following previous calls for forces to be amalgamated.
However, Mr McKerracher, a member of the SPSA board, said: "There is a danger that the SPSA is more expensive to run than the civil servants believe and its funding becomes another drain on the overall Scottish policing cake.
"If this does not happen, there is a risk that the SCDEA will be politically driven or developed at the whim of civil servants to an extent that damages the constitutional safeguards that are in place through the tri-partite relationship.
"Local police boards should know what the SCDEA policing plan is in their police area. Civil servants say we cannot go back to a collaboration under the Police Scotland Act - I don't see why not.
"But in a modern progressive Scotland, surely we can create a modern progressive collaboration that meets the need of the SCDEA and police boards."
Mr McKerracher's other solution is, though, even more radical than those who want to reform just policing structures: regional "mergers" of police, fire, and ambulance services, with eight unified call centres across Scotland. "These are changes that can be made in the short term that will save money and bring efficiency to our joint operations."
While ministers might say they have no current plans to restructure police forces, the growing calls for a debate and concerns about governance and resources to deal with national and international threats such as terrorism and organised crime can no longer be ignored.
How Scotland's top brass see the future of their organisations
Colin McKerracher
Chief Constable of Grampian and president of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland, he has called for shared control rooms for the main emergency services and raised concerns about gaps in tackling national threats.
Stephen House
The Chief Constable of Strathclyde, Scotland's largest police force in terms of staff, area and population covered, wants an urgent debate on the best structures to police Scotland and has hinted his force would be open to change.
Brian Sweeney
The Chief Officer of Strathclyde Fire and Rescue has called for all public services and local authorities to be looked at simultaneously and would like to see joint control rooms for emergency services to improve responses.
Paddy Tomkins
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary has called for the eight Scottish police forces to be amalgamated into one. In a period of tighter public spending, he believes it would save money and avoid duplications of effort.
