The state of Scotland’s depleted and crumbling police estate is laid bare today in shock new figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives.
A Freedom of Information response received by the party reveals that 333 police stations require repairs. That’s on top of 96 stations having been sold off since 2016.
Along with the sharp decline in officer numbers under the SNP, shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr MSP says the figures are further evidence of policing and community safety being undermined by the SNP Government.
He has condemned the SNP’s “sustained neglect” which he says is disastrous for community policing and will cause further problems in tackling rising crime.
Scottish Conservative shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr MSP said: “These staggering figures highlight Scotland’s depleted and crumbling police estate under the SNP.
“No wonder police morale is so poor, when officer numbers are at a record low and those who remain are often being made to work out of decrepit stations.
“It shows how hollowed out police budgets have become under the SNP that, despite almost 100 stations being sold in recent years, the funds still aren’t there to carry out necessary repairs to the stations that do remain.
“It’s unfair, unsustainable and undermines community policing.
“With police numbers at woefully low levels and violent crime on the rise, this is further evidence of the SNP’s sustained neglect of policing and public safety in Scotland.
“Rather than continuing to dismiss the siren warnings of rank-and-file officers, the SNP must properly resource Scottish policing.”
Notes to editors
There are 333 police stations that currently require repairs. Every area of Scotland contains police stations in need of repairs, including 21 in Edinburgh, 35 in Greater Glasgow, and 41 in the Highlands and Islands. The highest number was in the North East with 53 police stations in need of repairs. (Scottish Conservative FOI, April 2025, attached)
96 police stations have been sold since 2016. 26 were sold in 2019 and in recent years 9 were closed in 2022, 4 in 2023, 7 in 2024 and 3 in 2025 to date. (Scottish Conservative FOI, April 2025, available upon request)
There are over 900 fewer police officers today than there were before the pandemic. There are 16,508 police officers on the streets today compared to 17,431 at the beginning of 2020 – which is a fall of 923 officers. 2024 saw police officer numbers fall to their lowest level since 2007. (Scottish Government, 4 February 2025, link).
140 police stations and almost 100 police counters closed between 2013 and 2023. 140 police stations have closed while the number of police counters fell from 340 in 2013, the year Police Scotland was established, to 253 in 2023. (STV News, 26 April 2023, link)
Recorded crime in Scotland has risen in the last two years, with a 4% increase between the years ending December 2022 and December 2024. 287,678 crimes were recorded in the year ending December 2022. This rose by 4% in the year ending December 2024, with 298,308 crimes recorded. (Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland: year ending December 2024, 25 February 2025, link; Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland: year ending December 2022, 28 February 2023, link).
Crime has increased since 2020 with violent crime, sexual crime, domestic abuse and shoplifting all skyrocketing. Since 2020, non-sexual crimes of violence have increased by 10%, sexual crimes have increased by 11%, domestic abuse has increased by 50% and shoplifting has increased by 89%. (Scottish Government, 25 February 2025, link)
The Chair of the Scottish Police Federation has warned that underfunding has led to ‘policing deserts’ across Scotland. David Threadgold said station closures had left some areas with an ‘almost invisible policing presence, providing an utterly reactive service’. (BBC News, 25 March 2025, link)