This article appears as part of the Unspun: Scottish Politics newsletter.
The growing financial challenges in Scotland have left the police force desperately searching for savings. So why has Chief Constable Jo Farrell been handed a staggering pay rise?
While the £1.7 billion allocated for policing in Scotland seems like a lot, it falls significantly short of the settlement needed to continue at the current levels of operation.
Ms Farrell, who has been in the top job since 2023 when she replaced Sir Iain Livingstone, warned SNP ministers that an uplift of £104.9 million was needed.
And instead, the Scottish budget set out an increase of £90.3m.
Against that backdrop, the force faces unprecedented challenges, particularly with the rise of online child abuse.
Crime is on the rise in Scotland. It increased by 3% last year, with domestic abuse up by 25% and indecent photos of children rising 20% in 2024-25.
The public are also increasingly concerned by the lack of police officers in their neighbourhoods, with David Kennedy, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, warning many people were no longer reporting their crimes because of lengthy waits.
But from April this year, the Chief Constable will become one of the highest earning public servants in the UK.
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There is no doubt police officers should be paid well for keeping communities safe. However, for perspective, a starting salary for a constable in Scotland is around £33,000.
That figure is how much the Chief Constable’s salary will have increased since she took on the job as Scotland’s top officer.
From April, Ms Farrell’s salary will soar to an eyewatering £281,522 following a 3.5% pay hike for senior officers, set out by the Police Negotiating Board for Scotland.
Ms Farrell’s above inflation pay rise was signed off by Scottish Government ministers and followed a 4.4% increase last year.
Her salary was £248,724 when she took up the post three years ago – meaning her salary has increased £32,798.
At the same time, we are seeing some of the ramifications of the funding gap as police officers – some of whom have a terminal illness or were injured on the job – received letters warning them they would not receive special pay arrangements because of the funding challenges.
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Officers receive six months of full pay, followed by a further six months on half pay, which can be uplifted by the Chief Constable – a move that will no longer happen in many cases in order to save money.
Ms Farrell will become the second highest paid police chief in the UK – losing out to the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in London, who is on £330,000.
Ms Farrell apologised months after taking the job after it was revealed a police officer drove her on a 120-mile trip from Edinburgh to her home in Northumberland during Storm Babet in 2023.
It also cost taxpayers £134,000 to enable the Chief Constable to purchase a second home in Edinburgh.
The Scottish Police Authority (SPA) would not be drawn on whether Ms Farrell’s salary constituted value for money, but said staff pay was agreed by the Police Negotiating Board for Scotland, which brings together the government, the SPA and Police Scotland.
At a time when policing in Scotland struggles, will SNP ministers justify the hefty pay uplift?
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