Clydesdale MP David Mundell has launched a campaign to retain the public counter service at Biggar Police Station. This follows the announcement that Police Scotland, the new single police force for Scotland, plan to close the station to members of the public which means residents living locally will no longer be able to walk into the police station to report a crime.
The nearest remaining station under these plans where the public can walk in to report a crime or discuss a policing issue would be in Lanark. And as well as the increased distance and inconvenience, Mr Mundell also fears it will likely mean a cut in the number of officers on duty in the Clydesdale area.
The local MP believes that this would break the link between the police and the local community and will leave people living in what is a largely rural area without the police cover and services they need and expect. Mr Mundell is asking local residents to sign his petition which appears on his website and can also be signed in person at the Gillespie Centre in Biggar.
Launching his petition, David Mundell MP said: “This decision is simply unacceptable and will leave a large rural area here in Clydesdale which stretches well beyond Biggar town without face-to-face access to the police. I am urging local residents to sign my petition and hold the new police chiefs and the Scottish Government to account and make their voice heard. I believe that if we can demonstrate the strength of feeling locally we stand a real chance of reversing what would be a real blow to the community. ”
He added: “I have never supported the introduction of a single police force because I have always feared that it would see resources and officers sucked out of our region back into the central belt. It is really important that we make it clear from the offset that these sorts of changes are not supported here in Clydesdale.”
Mr Mundell has also written to Justice Sectary Kenny MacAskill to make his views known and has pledged to make a strong case for retaining current services at the station ahead of any final decision being taken.
The text of the petition is as follows:
I/We undersigned strongly believe that the public counter service at Biggar Police Station should be retained. In this large rural area it is unacceptable to ask people to travel to Lanark to access advice or report a crime in person.
This decision would damage the links between the local community and the police and goes against the kind of community policing which has been so successful in this region. This decision does not deliver good value for money and is yet another example of resources being redirected from our community back into the central belt.
I/We therefore ask you to reconsider this decision and help guarantee that Police services locally remain at the highest possible level.
Signing the petition:
Mr Mundell’s petition can be signed by visiting www.surveymonkey.com/s/BiggarPoliceStation or www.davidmundell.com/campaigns
Mr Mundell hopes to get as many people as possible to back his campaign before the 30th of October.