OFFICERS are being “encouraged not to arrest people”, the head of the Scottish Police Federation has said.
General secretary David Kennedy said Police Scotland does not have the “capacity” to arrest the amount of people it used to.
He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Breakfast show: “The criminal justice (system) changed. What’s happened is officers are encouraged not to arrest people. That’s the reality. That’s what’s happened, and with the amount of police offices and stations closed, the custody suites are no longer there.
“They don’t have the capacity anymore to arrest the amount of people they used to arrest. So it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy that’s happened because if they were to arrest continually, they can’t. They do not have the amount of cells they would require to do so.”
His comments came after Chief Superintendent Rob Hay, president of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents, wrote a letter in The Herald which warned: “The decline in arrest numbers should concern the public.”
His letter was in response to Chief Constable Jo Farrell’s annual report to the Scottish Police Authority in which she revealed there had been 15,451 fewer arrests where an accused had been brought to a custody centre in 2025-26.
Farrell said there were 83,765 instances of people being taken to a custody centre, down from 99,216 in 2024-25.
Kennedy assured the public they should continue to have “faith” in Police Scotland officers – but “not necessarily” in the organisation itself.
He explained: “That’s down to the fact that they’ve been stripped of the financial capability to make sure that we have enough police officers to do the job they’re meant to do, and the reality is at the moment we don’t.
“The problem is the organisation can’t cope. We don’t have enough police officers.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers are not being encouraged to avoid making arrests and it is inaccurate to suggest otherwise.
“The Chief Constable has made it clear her priority is to strengthen our frontline and provide a visible, proactive policing presence in our communities across the country.
“We are rolling out a sustainable model for local policing which is focused on achieving safer communities, less crime, supported victims and a thriving workforce.
“By taking a proportionate response to crime and making appropriate use of direct measures such as recorded warnings for less serious offences, officers can focus on addressing threat, harm, risk, and vulnerability in our communities.
“Where an individual is required to be arrested and brought into custody, they will be and we have custody provision across Scotland to ensure we keep communities safe.”
