Scotland's biggest police authority is seeking urgent meetings with Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill after describing the impact of a hike in pension payments on recruiting new officers as "critical".

Scotland's biggest police authority is seeking urgent meetings with Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill after describing the impact of a hike in pension payments on recruiting new officers as "critical".

Strathclyde Joint Police Board yesterday repeated its warnings that the £25m rise in pensions to fund higher lump-sum payments for retiring officers was jeopardising plans for hundreds of new officers and its plans for a community force within a force.

With the overall cost in Scotland coming to £50m by 2011, the government's pledge to put an extra 1000 officers on the street could also be in danger.

Scotland's police boards already have to find an extra £100m in the next three years to pay for increased pensions costs because of a sharp rise in retiring officers.

The concerns follow the announcement by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith of extra payments for retiring officers and with police pay and conditions decided at Westminster the Scottish Government can only approve the changes.

Chief secretary to the Treasury Yvette Cooper has already written to Finance Secretary John Swinney rejecting an appeal for an extra £48m to meet the additional pensions costs.

Paul Rooney, convener of the Strathclyde board, said: "We are at a critical stage on this. The Scottish Government is on record as saying there will be no more additional money for police pensions and I've asked for an urgent meeting with Kenny MacAskill which is scheduled for late August.

"We have ambitious targets for 900 new officers and community policing but additional sums for pensions equates to police officers."

Meanwhile, Strathclyde Police is to undertake a review of policing football matches over the next three months.

It will be headed up by Chief Superintendent Robin Howe, one of the UK's leading experts on football policing, and comes just three months after the Uefa Cup Final in Manchester ended in clashes with police.

Mr Rooney said: "I welcome this at the start of the season and just a few months from Manchester. Football matches are a fact of life in the west of Scotland but must be safe."

The board also heard that there are 90 assaults a day in Glasgow, with one in 70 of the city's residents in danger of being attacked.