HC Deb 12 November 1975 vol 899 cc1509-11
6. Mr. Robertson

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on police recruitment in Scotland.

The Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. Harry Ewing)

Substantial net gains in police strength have been recorded in the first three quarters of 1975. Although special factors have been at work in this period, the general trend is strongly upwards and I regard that as most satisfactory.

Mr. Robertson

Would my hon. Friend care to publish those figures? I think that all of us would be interested. Will he assure the House that present establishments will be maintained and that he will review establishments with a view to increasing the numbers of policemen? Undoubtedly the one fact that stands out is that there are not enough policemen to cope with the problems with which they are supposed to deal.

Mr. Ewing

I think the House will be interested to know that the net gain over the period that I have discussed was 448 officers. This is the biggest increase since records were first kept, and I agree with my hon. Friend that this reflects great credit on the present administration—[Interruption.] If the hon. Member for North Angus and Mearns (Mr. Buchanan-Smith) wants to try to protect his inefficiency when he was responsible for the job which I now do, I shall be interested to hear his defence.

The review of establishments was started in 1971, and in the course of it 1,899 police officer and 1,546 civilian posts were added. The review was completed in 1974, and against that background I am bound to tell my hon. Friend that I have no plans for a further review of establishments in Scottish police forces.

Mr. Monro

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that I am disappointed that he will not further review the establishments of police forces, particularly of those forces that have to carry out exceptional tasks that are disportionate to the needs of the region? I am referring particularly to police traffic patrols on the A74. Will the hon. Gentleman consider giving special financial and establishment help to those forces that carry out this special work?

Mr. Ewing

I think that it would have been more in keeping with the tone of the Question and Answer if the hon. Gentleman had given the Government thanks for the special assistance that we are giving to the Dumfries Constabulary in respect of the special tasks that it has to carry out. We have had an assurance that the tasks which have to be carried out in respect of the A74 are well within the capabilities of the force concerned. We have had no approaches on this matter.

Mrs. Bain

Can the hon. Gentleman say how many of the new recruits to police forces have been women, and what action he has taken to ensure that women are represented at all levels through the forces involved in law enforcement in Scotland?

Mr. Ewing

I could not give the figures without notice, but when we talk about establishments we talk about male and female officers. There is no question of females being recruited specifically to take the place of male members of the establishment, or of males being recruited to take the place of females.

Mr. Dempsey

Is my hon. Friend aware that I was informed only last week that there were not enough men on the ground to undertake the responsibility of dealing with a troublesome situation in my constituency? Can my hon. Friend say to what extent the approved establishment is under strength in the Strathclyde Region?

Mr. Ewing

I could not give the figures for the Strathclyde Region, but it is fairly obvious to the House and to all concerned that the Strathclyde Region force is the one force in Scotland that is substantially under establishment. When I talk about its being under establishment, I should add that the figure for vacancies in Scotland is below 1,000 for the first time in the history of the police forces in Scotland, so the trend is moving in the right direction and Strathclyde is benefiting to the same extent as the other forces.