Freeze: no new faces will grace the headquarters of Strathclyde Police for the forseeable future Pic: © STV
Strathclyde Police have announced a freeze on recruitment of all new police officers and associated staff due to "unprecedented financial challenges" ahead.
The decision, announced on Tuesday, will be implemented immediately. As a result, 100 people who were expected to enrol at the Scottish Police College in Tulliallan Castle, Fife later this year will no longer have a place. However, 65 trainee officers will head to the college this month.
In a statement, the force said they have enjoyed the recruitment of unprecedented levels of police officers. 8410 people now work as police officers in the Strathclyde region, including 1500 community officers - a rise of 1000 over the past two years.
John Gillies, director of human resources at Strathclyde Police, said: "The public sector is facing an unprecedented period of financial challenge and Scottish policing is not going to be immune to that. While we don't know exactly the scale of the cuts that we will be facing, early indications are that it could be anywhere up to ten percent of our budget in the next financial year. We have to prepare for that.
"We have more or less stopped recruiting police staff over the past few months and today we are formalising that. We also have to be realistic about the number of officers we can afford to recruit at this time of uncertainty.
"In the past couple of years we have seen a massive expansion in police officer numbers. This has allowed us to get more cops out onto our streets and into our communities. Protecting these front line services will be our absolute priority as we move forward with our plans to meet the challenges that lie ahead."
The statement added Strathclyde Police’s target of recruiting 457 officers as part of the Scottish Government’s pledge to employ an additional 1,000 officers across the country has been met.
Reacting to the announcement, the Conservatives have blamed Labour’s legacy of debt for one of the reasons behind Strathclyde Police’s decision. John Lamont MSP, Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Justice, said: "We all know that Labour's massive debt legacy means savings are inevitable. Strathclyde Police are to be commended for recognising this."
