POLICE numbers in Scotland have increased slightly, new figures show.
The number of Police Scotland’s full-time equivalent officers has risen by eight in the last three months and is up by 87 on the previous year.
The SNP has compared the situation with England and Wales, where they claim “police numbers have been decimated”.
Since 2007, when the SNP came to power, police numbers have increased by 1,025 to the latest figure of 17,259 full-time officers, recorded in June.
The most recent comparable figures, from the end of March, show police officer numbers in Scotland have increased by 6.3 per cent since 2007, compared to a 13.3 per cent drop in England and Wales.
SNP MSP Rona Mackay said: “These welcome new figures show the SNP Government continues to deliver more police on our streets. In contrast, police numbers have been decimated under the Tories. They’re at their lowest levels since the 1970s.”
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