A police officer has claimed that police have been told not to investigate drug dealers if it requires working overtime.
The unnamed officer who made the claim said officers are completing investigations out of “personal and professional pride” without pay, following a ban on working overtime hours.
The whistleblowing emails were sent to the General Secretary of the Scottish Police Federation Callum Steele by a concerned police officer.
A string of emails sent by officers detailing how cuts are affecting policing were shared on Twitter by the SPF general secretary.
The anonymous officer complained that officers were not being given time to investigate drug dealers as it could cause them to take overtime.
Mr Steele captioned the email: “Shameful reality of #police cuts Do not investigate DRUG DEALERS lest it incur overtime.”
The whistleblowing email reads: “You may already be aware that officers in [redacted] are on an overtime ban.
“This is unworkable and when a custody case or investigation demands overtime officers are staying on to complete the job out of personal and professional pride for NO PAY!!
“I am not a miserable old dinosaur, I have [redacted] service and I love my job.
“Whistle blowing on anything like this is career suicide with the [redacted] and I don’t want to ruin my career.
“So I’d rather my identity not be published anywhere. I work in [redacted] and we are being told not to be proactive and investigate drug dealers because hay [sic] could cause overtime but rather just do the work we are given.”
Another whistleblower claimed offenders were being released from custody to avoid incurring overtime.
The email was captioned: “People who should be held in custody are being released just one example amongst many of #police cuts reality.”
The claims come just days after Steele shared claims that officers were banned from using tea towels in a row over laundry expenses.
Mr Steele also shared examples of complaints from police offices including cops being forced to abandon the search for a balaclava thief to avoid spending overtime hours.
Liberal Democrat justice spokesman Liam McArthur said: “These latest reports are hugely concerning on the same day that we have seen the largest ever recorded number of drug-related deaths.
“We need our police officers to be helping take drug dealers off our streets, not heading home early because we cannot afford to pay for overtime.
“This is just the latest in a series of deeply worrying reports from officers on the front line who say they are not getting the resources they need to do their jobs.
“Maintaining officer numbers is meaningless unless they are able to be proactive in their job and help keep streets safe.
“SNP ministers are letting officers down and failing communities across Scotland.”
