A POLICE chief has slammed the “utterly deplorable and unacceptable” abuse against officers after records revealed more than 1000 Covid-related assaults. Force records show how Police Scotland officers and staff have been repeatedly spat at and coughed on since the pandemic started. Files for 2020-21 reveal 1087 incident write-ups where “spit”, “cough” and “Covid” are used. Those are a fraction of the overall 6942 recorded assaults on officers and staff during the period – a rise of more than 400 on the year before. Deputy Chief Constable Fiona Taylor said: “Officers and staff stepped-forward to help combat the spread of the virus, conducting in excess of 120,000 interactions with members of the public to explain rapidly changing guidance, encourage everyone to do the right thing and enforce the law where required.
STICKER ROW
Police Scotland slammed for clampdown on stickers from feminist group opposed to the relaxation of gender self-ID laws
Updated: 23 May 2021, 14:32
POLICE Scotland faced anger and ridicule after a clampdown on stickers from a feminist group opposed to the relaxation of gender self-ID laws.
The national force was accused of a “chilling” attack on free speech after announcing it was probing the matter as a “hate” crime.
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Police Scotland have been slammed by a feminist group over a clampdown on stickersCredit: Alamy
Officers in Kirkcaldy also urged members of the public to contact them or Fife Council if locals saw any more “controversial stickers”.
He described the scenes as “horrific”, also telling the BBC programme: “There are almost no polite words left to describe how bad the events (were) in Glasgow at the weekend – and indeed the wider west of Scotland.
“Many of the officers who are quite long in the tooth have probably quite rightly described it as some of the worst violence that they’ve experienced in over 20 years of police service.
“People being critical of the police, that’s nothing new, and those that don’t have an appreciation and understanding as to what’s involved in the policing tactics are rarely shy in holding back their points of view.
He described the scenes as “horrific”, also telling the BBC programme: “There are almost no polite words left to describe how bad the events [were] in Glasgow at the weekend – and indeed the wider west of Scotland.
“Many of the officers who are quite long in the tooth have probably quite rightly described it as some of the worst violence that they’ve experienced in over 20 years of police service.”
He said those criticising the police do not understanding policing tactics, adding: “There is no way that a police service of almost any size could have stopped that number of people moving and gathering – equally there may well be legitimate questions to ask about whether the gathering should have been broken up at an earlier stage, or notices to disperse the crowd should be given at an earlier stage.