Tayside Police is preparing to shed jobs and services as the squeeze on public sector spending hits home, it has emerged.
The Courier can reveal that a strategic group has been set up to consider the “tough decisions” that will have to be made in the wake of an acceptance the force will become a “smaller” organisation in the years to come.
But the man in charge of Transforming Tayside insisted a high standard of community policing would remain the top priority.
“Public sector funding is under severe pressure, and I don’t think there is any doubt that Tayside Police will have to work in substantially constrained financial circumstances,” said Superintendent Jim Leslie.
He added, “We have put this project together to put a plan in place for the next three years on how we are going to manage our reducing budget.”
The project has three main strands looking at efficiency savings, a review of the organisational structure and a best value review of civilian staff.
But the superintendent said no decisions would be made on potential cuts until the full financial impact of the squeeze was known.
The Scottish Government has confirmed that budgets for this year will not be affected, and the comprehensive spending review will be announced in the autumn.
It is feared the civilian staff could bear the brunt of any cuts with political paymasters keen to ensure frontline officers numbers are maintained.
Consultation is already under way with trade unions and staff associations, with initial discussions described by the force as “very positive.”
George McIrvine, Unison branch secretary for the force, said he would be working to ensure civilian staff posts were not unfairly targeted.
“Our Unison branch will be proactive in ensuring police staff are not the brunt of job cuts in the Scottish police service,” he said.
“At Tayside Police, a balanced approach is being taken, looking at all of the business not just a particular part of it.”
However, the body that represents rank-and-file officers is equally keen to protect its members.
“We are realistic about what the future holds,” said Sergeant Malcolm Gibbs, Tayside branch secretary of the Scottish Police Federation.
“There are going to be tough times ahead and we do have to help the force get that message across.
“What we are wanting to see is that we maintain frontline staff so we can deliver the quality of service while ensuring the safety of the officers that are doing that.”
Deciding where the axe will fall will be one of the challenges facing the Transforming Tayside project.
“Police officers cannot go out and perform their role without the back-up they get from a whole range of police staff posts,” said Mr Leslie.
“What we have to be able to do is continue to provide a good quality of service to the public.
“You simply can’t do that by making random cuts to the organisation.
“We will look very closely at where there is potential to make savings.”
The possibility of a merger with other forces is not on the agenda, but Tayside is looking at “collaboration” with neighbouring police authorities and other bodies.
The force will also be investigating possible cuts to services where it is felt that a particular role is not for the police, or can be better provided by another agency.
“I don’t think this process is necessarily bad news for the public,” added Mr Leslie.
“It’s very easy to get sucked into talk about numbers.
“But if there are areas where we can work smarter and more efficiently then we should be looking at them regardless of any budgetary pressures we may have.”
Initial proposals are expected to be put to councillors on the Tayside Joint Police Board in the autumn.
A public consultation will also be carried out.