Fears of new police duties as civilian staff shrinks

There were 7,109 police staff in June, a reduction of almost 10 per cent in a year.

The Scottish Government has put an extra 1,000 officers on the street compared with 2007.

Les Gray, chairman of the Scottish Police Federation, said: “We’ve made it clear several times it would be a false economy to replace police staff with officers. We’re not aware of it as yet, but we are on the look-out.”

Justice secretary Kenny Mac-Askill has written to officers and civilian staff, reassuring them their employment will not change when a single force comes into being in 2014.

However, David O’Connor, president of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents, warned: “Moving to a single force will remove a lot of the bureaucracy, and I sense there may be further implications for police staff.”

Labour said the reduction in civilian staff amounted to a broken SNP promise.

Johann Lamont, Scottish Labour justice spokeswoman, said: “The SNP has been caught red-handed making hollow promises to police staff.”

Cliff Anderson, general secretary of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland, said: “This reduction has happened as result of not replacing people who have left the service.”

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “The new Scottish Police Service will safeguard the services communities receive, making sure money is spent on the front line and not on unnecessary duplication.”