Police Scotland’s first female chief constable, Jo Farrell, is set to take up her post on Monday. The Scottish Police Authority appointed Farrell, who previously led the Durham Constabulary in England and was an assistant chief constable at Northumbria Police, with the approval of Justice Secretary Angela Constance. Constance praised Farrell as someone who has “shown she has the skills needed to lead the service”.
Farrell’s new role involves overseeing Scotland’s second-largest police force, with 16,805 officers. It is currently facing various challenges, including a projected £19m budget overspend and plans to sell off buildings and cancel the recruitment of 200 new officers. The force is also redeploying staff from the Scottish Police College at Tulliallan, Fife, to back up front-line officers during the busy Christmas and New Year period.
The conduct of Police Scotland officers is at the centre of the inquiry into the death of Sheku Bayoh, who died while in police custody in Kirkcaldy in 2015. Sir Iain Livingstone, the outgoing chief constable, previously deemed the force “institutionally racist and discriminatory” after a review found evidence of racism, sexism, and homophobia by serving officers.
Farrell is no stranger to controversy, having experienced several high-profile and challenging policing decisions in her four-year tenure as the Durham chief constable. She was in charge during the “beergate” investigation into allegations that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had breached coronavirus rules, and she also led the force during Dominic Cummings’ widely reported trip to Barnard Castle, County Durham, which took place during the height of the pandemic
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