A union representing police staff has called for urgent intervention from the Scottish Government following warnings of “massive cuts” to Police Scotland’s budget which they say could risk public safety.
Unison has called for the Scottish Government to “prioritise public safety” and “properly fund the police service” after warnings 4,500 jobs could be cut.
The Scottish Police Authority has provided written evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Criminal Justice committee in which they warns 4,500 jobs could be cut unless funding is “significantly increased”.
They also warned a pay freeze may have to be implemented.
It comes as the committee meets on Wednesday in order to scrutinise the Scottish Government’s budget for 2023/24 and its impact on policing as well as other areas of criminal justice.
The union said the force has already “borne the brunt” of cuts over the past decade and there has already been more than 2,600 jobs lost.
Michelle Brewster, Unison Scotland police branch secretary, said: “These figures by Police Scotland are deeply alarming and threatens the safety of everyone in Scotland.
“To threaten to cut thousands more will completely decimate the service and pose a huge risk to public safety.
“The police service is already the thinnest of thin blue lines. Cuts of this magnitude could see large-scale job losses to forensics, fraud, analyst and counter terrorism. It’s impossible to make such dramatic job reductions without putting the safety of the public at greater risk.
“We need urgent intervention from the Scottish Government to ensure that the police service is properly funded and that we keep our communities safe.”
Justice Secretary Keith Brown said: “Our largely fixed budgets and limited fiscal powers means the UK Government needs to provide the Scottish Government with sufficient funding to support public services and the economy in these difficult times.
“We have already made difficult choices to support pay offers in 2022-23 and rightly so, as our police workforce deserve this.
“While policing matters and budgetary prioritisation are always a matter for the Chief Constable, we remain fully committed to using the resources available to us to support the vital work of Police Scotland in delivering effective and responsive policing across Scotland.
“We will work with justice organisations including Police Scotland and SPA to develop and co-ordinate their delivery plans in response to the high-level Spending Review allocations.
“Despite UK Government austerity we have increased police funding year-on-year since 2016-17 and have invested more than £10 billion in policing since the creation of Police Scotland in 2013.”
A Treasury spokesperson said: “The responsibility for funding public services is largely devolved across the UK, but we have provided the Scottish Government with a record £41 billion per year for the next three years – the highest spending review settlement since devolution.”
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