Glasgow and its surrounding areas have seen a massive rise in the number of attacks on police officers.

Police Scotland say assaults on members of the force have hit a five-year high, with more than 1,600 in just three months.

They reported a 10 percent increase in the number of attacks between Apri and June in comparison to last year.

The figure rose from 1,498 last year to 1,649 in the first quarter of 2019.

The latest statistics also showed a large increase in the number of violent attacks in the west command area, recording a rise of 22.1 percent.

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And almost half of the 1,032 attacks took place in the Greater Glasgow and Lanarkshire police divisions.

Saturdays were found to be the peak day for assaults, particularly between 8pm and 1am.

Calum Steele, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, said that officers were regularly being targeted by armed individuals. 

He said: “These figures simply tell us what police officers have known for some time - that is that instances and levels of violence they face is increasing and doing so exponentially.

“As more police officers are assaulted, the levels of the injuries they sustain are also increasing in severity.

“Encountering criminals with knives and other weapons is a daily occurrence and yet politicians continue to make cheap political points over officers’ safety equipment while our colleagues get maimed and injured with increasing regularity.” 

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Deputy chief constable Fiona Taylor said: "Our officers find themselves dealing with dangerous situations on a daily basis to protect the people and communities we serve and are trained to a high level to deal with violent and confrontational situations.

"But being assaulted is not simply part of the job.

"No assault on a police officer can ever be tolerated and Police Scotland has a legal and a moral duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of our people.

"Each assault will be investigated with the same care, compassion and commitment as an assault on a member of the public and the best evidence secured to support prosecution.

“We are considering new ways, including taking learning from elsewhere in the UK, to ensure we provide the best support to our people.”