Question reference: S6W-03069
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 22 September 2021
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Current status: Answered by Keith Brown on 30 September 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had or plans with (a) the chief constable and (b) Police Scotland regarding what action can be taken to address the concerns reportedly expressed by the chief constable that non-emergency calls to the force were abandoned 40% of the time due to delays in answering calls.
Answer
Police Scotland have advised that this has been an exceptionally busy period for the service and particularly for the Contact, Command and Control Division, with an unprecedented call levels to both the 101 non-emergency number and 999 call lines. The COVID pandemic has and continues to place unprecedented pressures on our emergency services. Across Scotland all organisations have had to manage increased leaves of covid-related absence while maintaining service levels.
While delivery of the police 101 service is a matter for Police Scotland, I have sought assurances around its operation and the Chief Constable has outlined a number of improvements, including updated options for callers and system changes to better prioritise calls have been outlined as part of these discussions. Callers to the 101 service are advised if their call is related to an emergency to dial 999. The latest figures show that 999 calls are answered on average within 7 seconds.