Police Scotland’s priorities focus on tackling crime and promoting community safety

Policing priorities aim to ensure work continues to tackle crime and to promote crime prevention, while also working to keep communities safe.

The revised strategic police priorities (SPPs), which follow extensive consultation over the summer and autumn, reflect developments and progress in police operations and governance.

The priorities include the obvious such as crime and security – prioritising prevention, detection, investigation, equality and human rights to support positive criminal justice outcomes; responding to threats, and maintaining public order.

Other priorities include continuing to work to inspire public trust by being ethical, open and transparent, and maintains relationships with local communities; working in partnership to keep communities safe; and adapting resources and plans for both current and future social, economic and financial circumstances.

Police Scotland Chief Constable Iain Livingstone said: “These priorities reflect the broad remit of policing, from crime prevention and investigation to our crucial, but contributory, role in improving the wider wellbeing of communities.

“I am committed to relentlessly improving how we reflect, engage with and serve our communities, ensuring we uphold our values of human rights, fairness, integrity and respect.

“Reform has helped to maintain responsive and visible local policing in our communities and transformed how serious crime and major incidents are dealt with while policing is asked to deliver around £200 million of annual savings compared to legacy arrangements.

“To deliver these strategic priorities, it is vital policing is able to invest in core infrastructure. These improvements will support our people and enable them to meet a wide range of challenges, from sustainability to emerging crime threats.”

Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf said the strategic priorities sought to promote continued engagement with communities, securing the public’s confidence in their police service.

He added: “The Justice Committee carried out a major inquiry that recognised significant achievements since Police Scotland’s creation, including new national capabilities and improvements in how rape and sex crime is investigated. The 2017-18 Scottish Crime and Justice Survey also found a majority of adults consider the police do a good or excellent job in their local area.

“This year Police Scotland played a key role in the implementation of new domestic abuse laws, while also introducing mobile technology to keep officers in local communities and strengthening its system for handling calls from the public.

“Building on such progress, the new priorities will inform the future direction of Scotland’s highly valued police service.”