Budget cuts by the SNP Government have been blamed for rocketing crime and falling detection rates in Scotland.
Police Scotland had solved less than half of its cases in the past year. The figure gets even worse for crimes like housebreakings, with four out of five not being ‘cleared up’ – and an incident recorded every two hours.
The shock figures come as Police Scotland’s new boss prepares to take her role. This week, Jo Farrell was appointed the national force’s chief constable and will move from Durham to take over from Iain Livingstone.
The Scottish Daily Mail reports the number of crimes committed rose by 4.3 per cent from 221,267 in 2021/22 to 230,814 in 2022/23. Among those cases, the clear-up rate fell to 49.4 per cent from 51 per cent.
In housebreakings, there were 4,682 domestic break-ins or attempted break-ins in 2022/23, up from 4,524 the previous year. The figure represents one every two hours, but the detection rate dropped.
Non-sexual crimes of violence increased by 12%, from 61,913 to 69,286. This was driven by a rise in common assault (also up 12%), which makes up the clear majority (84%) of all non-sexual crimes of violence recorded in 2021-22.
Sexual crimes increased by 15%, from 13,131 to 15,049. These crimes are now at the highest level since 1971, the first year comparable groups are available.
Crimes of dishonesty increased by 4%, from 89,731 to 92,873. These crimes are recorded at the second lowest level seen since 1971.
Damage and reckless behaviour crimes increased by 3%, from 42,964 to 44,284.
Police Scotland is facing a £74 million funding gap, which equates to about a 3.7 per cent cut in staffing levels. The Scottish Government allocated £1.45 billion to the force in the last budget. Still, any additional funds have “already been spent” on pay settlements from the previous financial year that are being back paid – leaving a funding gap of about £74 million.
About 230 members of police staff could lose their jobs, according to trade union Unison, urging ministers to reconsider the “draconian” measures to avoid putting the public at risk. Among those affected include fingerprint experts, forensic examiners, 999 call handlers, custody staff, high-speed driving instructors, cybercrime experts, payroll, HR and IT staff
Police Scotland has the lowest number of officers since 2008, with 16,805 full-time equivalent (FTE) police officers on 31 March 2022. Police officer numbers decreased by 312 FTE officers (-1.8%) in the last quarter from 31 December, and police officer numbers fell by 479 FTE officers (-2.8%) in the previous year from 31 March 2021.
The SNP has been a disaster for justice in Scotland; not only have they underfunded Police Scotland, leaving it chronically short of staff and the facilities to investigate crime, but they have also brought in policies that have impacted sentencing.
We need to see the sentencing guideline that has seen those under 25 receive community payback orders for severe crimes such as rape and manslaughter instead of a custodial sentence that those under 25 would automatically receive.
Under the SNP, we have seen an increase in the number of dangerous criminals released on bail, leading to higher recidivism rates, including murder. No criminal who is a danger to the public should receive bail; those who breach bail orders should be immediately remanded to prison instead of being arrested and released on bail multiple times.
The SNP has cut the amount of time criminals have to serve and is looking to cut this further by introducing legislation that will take the amount of time an offender spends on bail electronically tagged off their sentence. This needs to be stopped, and sentences served in full.
The police, justice and prison systems need a massive boost in funding. We need more police officers patrolling the streets in our communities, more prison spaces, and sentences that reflect the seriousness of the crime and the impact they have on victims and broader society.
There has been a lot of talk about the importance of rehabilitation instead of punishment of late. This has led to many offenders not being jailed but put on underfunded so-called rehabilitation programs that are ineffectual and many offenders do not even bother to turn up for.
Punishment is an integral part of rehabilitation, and sentences must reflect this. We also need better-funded rehabilitation programs when an offender becomes eligible and better support when finally released back into society. There is no quick fix to these problems, only a persistent commitment to a lengthy process.
