Humza Yousaf rubbishes claims Scottish police stations are falling apart – despite damp, leaking ceilings and mushrooms
JUSTICE Secretary Humza Yousaf was today accused of denying the “blindingly obvious” after he rubbished claims that police stations are “falling apart”.
The SNP cabinet minister branded the warnings as “hyperbole” - despite photos and videos from front-line cops showing parts of buildings in disrepair.
But the Scottish Police Federation responded angrily to his remarks and tweeted snaps of rundown stations across Scotland - including leaking ceilings near wiring or sockets, broken plasterboard and mould.
And SPF general secretary Calum Steele told The Scottish Sun: “It’s not a good look for a cabinet secretary to be in denial about what is plain to see.”
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Earlier on Twitter, Mr Steele blasting Mr Yousaf’s “hyperbole” claim saying: “I’d love to know how he would describe buildings that have water p1$Hing in, mould, damp, mushrooms growing in the carpets, rats, broken tiles and more.”
And SPF vice chair David Hamilton added: “Perhaps a more appropriate comment would be to acknowledge the blindingly obvious and say what @ScotGov is going to do about it?”
One serving officer weighed in and tweeted: “Sadly the cab sec has shown he has no interest in us. Just keeps banging on about independence. Totally lost the dressing room.”
The Justice Secretary’s controversial remarks at Holyrood came as he was quizzed on Police Scotland’s funding crisis.
Last week, Chief Constable Iain Livingstone attacked the force’s “derisory” capital budget from the Scottish Government, which is used for spending such as buying gear and upgrading buildings.
Today at Holyrood, Labour MSP James Kelly told Mr Yousaf: “The Scottish Police Federation reports that 25 per cent of police stations are in poor condition, and David Hamilton of the SPF tweeted a picture, a video of a police station in Paisley where water was leaking in through a roof.
“Does the Cabinet Secretary accept that it’s completely unacceptable that some of our police stations are falling apart? And what action will be taken in the Budget to ensure that we’ve a police estate that’s fit for purpose?”
But Mr Yousaf responded: “I think, you know, hyperbole by describing police stations as falling apart is unhelpful.”
Suggesting the Fed were ramping up pressure ahead of the February 6 Scottish Budget, he added: “I don’t doubt the Scottish Police Federation have a job to do, particularly pre-Budget, in order to try to do what they can to ensure that there’s a maximum amount of resource coming to police.
“They wouldn’t be doing their job if they didn’t do that.”
Images posted on Twitter by Mr Steele and Mr Hamilton today included sodden floors and buckets at Paisley police station as well as a video of leaking wall and windows at Pitlochry police station, with evidence bags taped over plug sockets.
Both were said to have been captured in recent weeks. Others from over the past year included problems in Dundee, Oban, Dunoon and Forfar.
Mr Steele said surveyors contracted to examine stations last year had found many in disrepair.
He said: “The simple reality is the police estate is in shocking condition. “This is not an assessment made by the SPF, the Police Service of Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority or any politician. It is an assessment made by qualified individuals who know what they are talking about.”
Police Scotland is currently in the red by around £40 million a year.
And we revealed last week that a force finance briefing showed 1500 officers would have to be lost by 2023 to balance the books unless £70 million is found.
At Holyrood, Tory shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr told Mr Yousaf that £50 million was needed next year to maintain officer numbers.
And he echoed top cop Mr Livingstone’s concerns that £200 million had been cut from the police budget since the merger of forces in 2013.
But Mr Yousaf said there had been real-terms increases in the Police Scotland core allocation in recent years, despite a “decade of UK austerity”.
He pointed out capital investment is also up - though Police Scotland have pointed out rises fall far short of what Police Scotland claim they need.
Mr Yousaf added that Scotland has 32 officers per head of population, compared to 23 in England and Wales.
And he said the Treasury’s refusal to give a VAT exemption to Police Scotland after it was formed in 2013 - a decision later reversed - had cost policing £125 million.
Mr Yousaf told Mr Kerr: “The UK Government stole £125 million out of policing and you’re asking us to put £50 million back in.
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“If he really wants to be helpful, he could use that enormous influence that he has with his UK Government colleagues to get them at the stroke of a pen to reverse that decision and give us that £125 million back.
“And while he’s at it, will he ask them to give us the £200 million that Police Scotland have demanded and asked for in order to cover a UK Government-hosted event, that is COP26 (climate summit), because they are already having to spend money, they are already having to use resources, and by the way they haven’t seen a single copper penny from the UK Government.”
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