Professor John Robertson OBA
STV, only 5 days ago had the above inaccurate claims, overtime figures found by the thoroughly discredited friend of Labour, the 1919 magazine, with an extended rant from Scottish Labour‘s Pauline McNeill.
The STV report is utterly devoid of reliably sourced facts such as these:
From Safer Communities and Justice Statistics Monthly Data Report: July 2025 published today, some key points getting no media attention:
There were 16,553 full-time equivalent (FTE) police officers in Scotland on 31 March 2025. This was 319 (+2.0%) more officers compared to the position on 31 March 2007, and 197 (+1.2%) more than on 31 March 2024.
How much has crime fallen in Scotland. From a Grok AI question:
Since 2007, crime in Scotland has significantly decreased, with various sources indicating a substantial decline in overall recorded crime and specific crime categories. According to the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) and police recorded crime statistics, overall crime has fallen by approximately 40-45% since 2006/07. Specifically, the SCJS reported a 42% reduction in crime from 2008/09 to 2017/18, and posts on X have cited a 40% decrease in recorded crime since 2007. By 2022/23, police recorded crime was noted to be at one of the lowest levels since 1974, with a 45% drop in overall crime since 2008/09.
Violent crime has seen an even steeper decline, with a reported 46% reduction in violent crime from 2008/09 to 2017/18 according to the SCJS, and a 39% decrease in violent crime since 2008 as per 2021 figures. Homicides have also dropped significantly, with a 65% reduction since 2005, and by 2022/23, the murder rate was at its lowest level since modern records began. The number of homicide victims halved from 2007 to 2013/14, with further reductions to 52 in 2022/23.
https://www.gov.scot/publications/recorded-crime-scotland-2023-24/pages/5/
In terms of specific crime rates, the national crime rate per 10,000 population was 1,007 in 2004/05, dropping to 561 by 2023/24, reflecting a significant decline. Crimes of dishonesty, which include theft, housebreaking, and shoplifting, decreased by 74% from their peak in 1991 to 2019/20. Fire-raising and vandalism crimes fell by 43% from 2011/12 to 2020/21.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/916472/crime-rate-of-scotland-uk/ https://www.gov.scot/publications/recorded-crime-scotland-2019-2020/pages/3/ https://www.gov.scot/publications/recorded-crime-scotland-2020-2021/pages/3/
Does Scotland have more police officers per head of population to achieve this falling crime?
Again from Grok:
The police officer ratio, typically measured as the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) police officers per 100,000 people, varies across England, Scotland, and Wales. Based on the most recent available data from 2024:
- England and Wales: As of March 31, 2024, there were 147,746 FTE police officers for a combined population of approximately 59.6 million (based on 2021 Census estimates). This equates to roughly 247 officers per 100,000 people.
- https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn00634/ https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-workforce-england-and-wales-31-march-2024/police-workforce-england-and-wales-31-march-2024
- Scotland: As of March 31, 2024, there were 16,356 FTE police officers for a population of approximately 5.5 million. This results in about 295 officers per 100,000 people. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn00634/ https://policepromotion.blog/2024/07/30/police-workforce-2024-part-1-officer-numbers-across-uk-and-ireland/
- Wales (specific breakdown): Wales, included in the England and Wales figures, has about 8,076 FTE officers (as of 2023) for a population of roughly 3.1 million, yielding approximately 260 officers per 100,000 people. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn00634/
These figures reflect FTE officer counts and population estimates, with Scotland maintaining a higher ratio than England and Wales combined, and Wales slightly higher than the overall England and Wales average.
Scotland thus has around 30% more police officers per head of population than England does.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
OK FOLKS LETS STOP BUYING ANY PRODUCTS SEEN ON STV CHANNEL
THEY ARE NOT SUPPORTING SCOTLANDS FREEDOM
SO WHY REWARD THEM WITH YOUR SUPPORT
AND ADVERTISERS WHO SUPPORT THEM SHOULD FEEL THE LOSS OF SALES
FROMM SCOTS
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Scotland 297, Wales 261, England 247, so Scotland ca 20% more per pop than England – I see what you meant about “in little more than a Labour campaign leaflet” – Then looked to which STV journalist regurgitated this tripe, and predictably it was Christina O’Neill, Assistant Producer, STV News (Glasgow and West), and ” erstwhile tabloid pun apologist “.
Police numbers may at times be overstretched when the unpredictable arises, thence eating into the overtime budget – Overtime is a perfectly normal setup for all emergency services, you can never guess when the next motorway pileup will occur, or a muckle great blue tent needs erected and guarded 24/7 to ensure nobody nicks it…
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20 protesters. 6,000 Police. On a jolly. Hanging about doing nothing. Drinking after hours and living it up. The Police breaking the Law per usual. Racking up the overtime. From top to bottom. Over paid and under crime.
Abused women do not get legal aid. They get no help.
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I’m not too concerned about the number of police officers in Scotland, although it’s good the see the increase. What concerns me is the quality of these officers, and even more so, the ability of the senior ranks directing them to remain independent of British State pressures. Just think Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon.
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