“ASPS welcomes the latest comprehensive report from HMICS regarding the police uniform and along with fellow staff associations and trade unions, we are fully engaged with Police Scotland’s recently launched Review of Uniform which we hope will progress with alacrity.
“Too often, our officers and staff have seen a quality-tested item of uniform being discarded in a later procurement process in favour of a cheaper, inferior version of that clothing. This has been particularly notable in recent years with the versions of all-climate zipped tops, microfleeces, trousers and now the safety patrol boot, all of which have reduced in quality from the original items tested and issued. It is literally, cutting the cloth to make the savings but that is ultimately a false economy as HMICS report evidences.
“Scotland’s weather is often the topic of discussion and good humour, with Sir Billy Connolly famously saying, “There is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes!” Our frontline police officers and staff work in all-weathers and should be issued with smart uniforms that are practical, well-fitted, warm and waterproof, protecting them from the elements, with options for the four-seasons-in-a-day they will often encounter on patrol in our communities across Scotland.”
Stewart Carle
General Secretary
Association of Scottish Police Superintendents