Plans to do away with the “public face” of the police station which is at the heart of managing Scotland’s largest music festival have come under attack.
The wisdom of closing the public counter at Kinross Police Station which is central to policing T in the Park has been questioned by Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife.
“The SNP cuts to our local police services will clearly impact on front line services and with plans to close the public counter at Kinross Police Station there are even more questions given that the station is used to help manage the policing of T in the Park,” she said.
“Every year the T in the Park festival site temporarily becomes the equivalent of the fifth largest town in Scotland over the weekend, and comparable to the largest city centre.
“This clearly brings with it additional policing issues and it is my understanding that Kinross Police Station is significantly busier during T in the Park with more police stationed and on duty as well as more visitors arriving in Kinross seeking assistance and advice.
“Scottish Conservatives called for the police counter changes to be put out to a full input of the public and expert groups, and that is why we called in parliament for the proposals to be put out to public consultation.
“I fundamentally believe that it is important to bring policing closer to the public and that is why Scottish Conservatives have expressed the gravest concerns about what will be seen as yet another diminution of local services in a way that has already affected many local services.”
T in the Park, which reaches its 21st year this year and takes place between July 10 and 13, regularly attracts 85,000 people on each day.
The festival recently won an hour-long extension from Perth and Kinross Council’s licensing committee for the Saturday, meaning that the main arena can operate until 1am.
This is to allow two headline acts who would both expect to perform in darkness. Among the top acts confirmed for this year is the Arctic Monkeys.