Nearly a quarter of police vehicles in Scotland have clocked up more than 100,000 miles, figures have shown. The Scottish Liberal Democrats are now urging Holyrood ministers to provide Police Scotland with the vehicles it needs for the job.
Figures obtained by the party via freedom of information legislation showed that the force has 348 vehicles that are more than 10 years old, while 754 vehicles have racked up more than 100,000 miles – 22.6 per cent of all police cars. However, 51.6 per cent of vehicles had done fewer than 50,000 miles and a quarter – 25.7 per cent – had accumulated between 50,000 and 100,000 miles. Just 173, or 5 per cent, of the service’s 3,335 vehicles are hybrid or electric.
Liam McArthur MSP, Scottish Liberal Democrats justice spokesperson, said: “100,000 miles on the clock is the equivalent of going round the entire world four times over. There’s no sense in junking vehicles that are still functioning, but it does raise questions about where officers are being given the equipment they need to do their job.
“Carrying out police duties in decade-old vehicles is just another symptom of the pressure that Police Scotland is under. It’s right that usage of police resources is maximised but officers, staff and the public don’t want to see the national force dependent on short-term, cheap or polluting fixes.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said it had more than “doubled the police capital budget since 2017-18, supporting continued investment in police assets, including the vehicle fleet, to ensure officers have the tools they need to do their jobs effectively”.
“We continue supporting Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority’s (SPA) ambition to move towards a more sustainable policing fleet,” the spokesman said. “The Scottish Government made an additional £10 million available to the Scottish Police Authority in March 2021 to invest in fleet modernisation and £5 million is included in the SPA capital budget in 2022-23 to support greening the police fleet.”
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