By Editor,Graham Grant Home Affairs

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Scotland’s beleaguered police force is losing public confidence and struggling to cope with rising crime and ‘civil unrest’, bosses have warned.

In a bombshell report, police chiefs say ‘social cohesion’ is at risk as the service struggles to prevent offending and -investigate incidents.

They are lobbying for an extra £113.4million to bail the force out of a looming cash crisis to enable it to recruit more staff and tackle the surge in crime.

The warnings come ahead of the draft Scottish Budget, scheduled for January, when Finance Secretary Shona Robison will announce funding for policing and other -public bodies.

Last night Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘This damning submission from Police Scotland’s top boss must be an urgent wake-up call for the SNP Justice Secretary, Angela Constance.

‘The Chief Constable is effectively telling ministers that when it comes to cuts to the police budget, enough is enough.

‘Frontline officers are being repeatedly asked to do more with less and police stations continue to be closed at an alarming rate.

‘The SNP cannot continue to act oblivious to the perilous position Scotland’s police force is in.’

In the ‘pre-Budget scrutiny’ report to the Scottish parliament’s criminal justice committee, Police Scotland, led by Chief Constable Jo Farrell, said it faced a range of pressures.

It said: ‘Poverty, inequality, new and changing criminality, as well as recent and developing geopolitical issues, are driving vulnerability and harm, including the exploitation of children by organised crime groups and individuals, as well as civil unrest which has been demonstrated by weekly protests.

‘There are clear indications the rapidly intensifying operational environment is placing our reduced workforce under pressure and that policing performance is straining, including the public’s confidence to report crime and in policing’s ability to reduce harm through prevention and proactivity.

‘These factors have informed the Chief Constable’s professional view that urgent support is required to strengthen frontline services.’

It said policing ‘continues to respond to increasing civil unrest, including anti-immigration protests focusing on hotels, and counter-demonstrations.

‘These events are occurring within the context of ongoing public dialogue and protest in relation to Palestine and the proscription by the UK Government of “Palestine Action Group”.’

The report said the ‘public’s confidence in policing’s ability to prevent crime and investigate incidents is deeply connected to social cohesion’ so that ‘communities feel able to come forward to report crime’.

And they admitted their own workforce feels ‘under-resourced to carry out their duties’, with only 48 per cent saying they had a ‘manageable’ workload.

The report is highly unusual for police chiefs because of its stark admission that policing is in such a weakened position that it is struggling to perform its core duties.

David Threadgold, chairman of the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), representing rank-and-file officers, said: ‘This is a change of tone from senior executive members and a very honest appraisal of where we are now.’

Writing in The Herald, Calum Steele, former SPF general secretary, said: ‘It is a warts-and-all analysis of where policing stands – and the risks that lie ahead if its decline isn’t addressed.

‘It paints a brutal picture that should make not only ministers but parliament as a whole wince.’