A top-level review of First Minister Alex Salmond's security is being conducted by police amid fears the current arrangements do not ensure his safety.
A senior officer has been drafted in to look at increasing security at Salmond's homes in Edinburgh and Aberdeenshire.
The Metropolitan Police provides "personal protection" for the Prime Minister, as well as certain government ministers and ambassadors.
Specialist officers travel with UK ministers to ensure their safety, but Salmond does not enjoy the same service.
It was revealed in 2010 that his Government driver, Roger Cherry, doubled as his bodyguard.
However, while providing Salmond with Cabinet-minister-style protection has been ruled out, a senior officer has been seconded to the Scottish Government to conduct a review.
A serving inspector at Police Scotland, who is believed to have worked for the now-defunct Lothian and Borders force for more than 20 years, focusing on public-order issues and dealing with firearms incidents, is in charge of the review.
It is understood his review will look at strengthening security at the First Minister's Bute House residence in Edinburgh, as well as his home in Strichen, while monitoring Salmond's safety when he goes walkabout will also be considered.
A source said there had not been any significant security concerns in the past, but the independence referendum meant that checks had to be put in place.
Stuart Crawford, a former lieutenant colonel in the British Army who is now a lobbyist, welcomed the review: "It's a sad fact of modern life that our political leaders sometimes come under threat of physical harm or attack. It's possible, although unlikely, that the low risk to our FM both at home and as he goes about his business could increase as the independence debate becomes increasingly heated.
"It's only sensible, then, that his security be reviewed, as should that of all public figures from time to time.
"Don't be surprised if Mr Salmond – and his successors in due course –are accompanied by dedicated police officers and/or security personnel in the future. And I dare say a few CCTV cameras around his house, with the appropriate local back-up, wouldn't go amiss either."
Scottish Labour's justice spokesman, Graeme Pearson, said: "This shows where the First Minister's priorities lie. We have cuts to support staff, which means police officers are behind desks instead of out on the beat, but he's more concerned about his own safety rather than that of communities across Scotland."
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "We do not comment on security issues."
Why are you making commenting on HeraldScotland only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article