Police body's legal action warning over Donald Trump's Scottish visit
Police Scotland makes mutual aid to Northern Irish counterparts amid demand for officers
The body representing rank and file police officers across Scotland is looking into potential legal action after warning that workforce agreements have been broken by Police Scotland in the run up to Donald Trump’s visit to the country.
David Kennedy, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation, said it was seeking legal advice regarding potential action against Scotland’s national force surrounding several breaches of the agreements.
Amid ongoing warnings over the extraordinary demand facing the police as it deals with the US president’s visit, the force has said it is “working closely” with the federation to address its concerns, but the latest escalation reveals how tensions are running high.
The five day visit by Mr Trump, scheduled to begin this Friday, poses one of the biggest operational challenges for the force since the COP26 climate change summit nearly four years ago, with thousands of officers set to be deployed as part of a vast security operation.
It is understood Mr Trump’s trip will begin at the Trump Organisation owned Turnberry resort in South Ayrshire, before he heads to Aberdeenshire to his inaugural Scottish property, Trump International Golf Links, although details have yet to be confirmed. The US embassy in London referred The Scotsman to the White House, which did not respond to enquiries at the time of writing.
With several anti-Trump protests also expected across Scotland protest scale of the policing operation, Police Scotland has submitted a mutual aid request to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) for additional officers to help with the demand.
Warning over ‘legally binding’ agreement
With concerns mounting over the impact of Mr Trump’s visit on police resources, Mr Kennedy said that if necessary, the federation - which represents 98 per cent of all police officers in Scotland - would go to court so as to look after officers.
He said: “We currently have workforce agreements in place to protect police officers and provide minimum standards of health and safety at work.
“Sadly, we have seen these agreements breached in the days leading to the arrival of the US president and as such we are seeking legal advice regarding potential legal action against the service.”
Earlier, Mr Kennedy addressed the issue in an interview with STV, stating: “We have an agreement reached for all officers in Scotland and the shifts they work, and how you police Scotland. There’s certain parameters that the service have to follow, and if they don’t follow them, then that is a breach of that agreement, which is legally binding.
“If they breach that, then the only option to the SPF to protect its members is to go to court.”
He added: “This is a big event for Police Scotland, but we have major concerns. We do not have enough police officers in Scotland. Anyone that says we do, I don’t know where they get those figures from.
“We know what police officers have to do day in, day out and we need more officers in Scotland. When these events come along that puts those officers that are here under so much pressure.”
Asked about the SPF’s comments, Police Scotland’s assistant chief constable, Emma Bond, said: “We are working closely with the Scottish Police Federation to address any concerns they may have.”
At the weekend, the federation’s chair, David Threadgold, told Scotland on Sunday that some officers involved in Mr Trump’s visit may be expected to work 12 hour shifts, posing a “challenge” for how they eat, sleep and rest.
Mr Threadgold said that “very few if any” officers will not be impacted by the operation, and compared it to previous presidential visits and the COP26 summit that took place in Glasgow in 2021.
He added: “We are talking about bespoke workforce plans because although this is a well-established workforce, we are cognisant we cannot deliver this without impacting on individual officers across the country.
“What that means in simple terms is some may be required to work 12-hour shifts, for example, which normally wouldn’t happen. That is the type of change cops will see during this event.”
Police in Northern Ireland assessing request
Details of the request by Police Scotland to the PSNI remain unclear, but it has echoes of the mutual aid agreement struck with other forces in 2018, when Mr Trump visited Scotland during his first term in office.
A spokeswoman for the PSNI confirmed it had received a request from Police Scotland, and that the force would have to ensure its own “operational competence” when assessing it.
She explained: “There are well established processes for any UK based police services to request support from other services at times of peak demand.
“These requests are managed via the National Police Co-ordination Centre and we can confirm that PSNI have received a request to provide mutual aid to Police Scotland which we are currently assessing.
“The decision to provide officers under the mutual aid process will be considered against our own demands, ensuring that we retain the capacity to respond effectively to local issues and maintain our own operational competence.”
Mr Trump’s visit - his first to Scotland since 2023 - will see him meet with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer while in Aberdeen. A spokeswoman for the White House said the meeting will allow the two men to “refine the great trade deal” that was brokered between the UK and US.
Plans are also being drawn up for an engagement between Mr Trump and First Minister John Swinney, although it is not clear where, or when, the two men will meet.
Airspace restrictions in place
Strict airspace restrictions will be in place over Mr Trump’s resort in Balmedie. According to notices filed by the Civil Aviation Authority, there is a ban on unmanned aircraft flying below 1,000 feet within a one mile radius surrounding the property.
The ban not only covers drones, but parachutes, paramotors, small balloons, and any kites, according to the documentation. When Mr Trump visited Turnberry seven years ago, a paraglider descended on the resort, prompting Police Scotland to warn the individual that they had put themselves in “grave danger.”
This time around, protesters who have joined forces under a group known as the ‘Stop Trump Coalition’ have organised two protests in Scotland, with one scheduled to take place at Union Terrace Gardens in Aberdeen on Saturday, while another will be held outside the US consulate in Edinburgh the same day.
Police Scotland’s assistant chief constable, Emma Bond, has said a policing plan will be in place to “maintain public safety, balance rights to peaceful protest and mimimise disruption.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.