Dumbarton and Vale residents will get the chance to make their views known about Police Scotland’s plans to remove our police headquarters from Dumbarton to Paisley at a public meeting organised by local MSP Jackie Baillie and MP Gemma Doyle.

The Labour MP and MSP are inviting residents to attend the meeting on Monday 16 February at 7.30pm at the Concord Community Centre in Dumbarton town centre.

Under the proposals announced last year, our local policing division will be merged with Renfrewshire and Inverclyde. This could result in the closure of Dumbarton Police HQ with local policing operations being run from south of the River Clyde in Paisley.

This public meeting will be the only opportunity for residents to have their say about the controversial plans given Police Scotland’s refusal to conduct a full public consultation.

Police Scotland has been invited to send a representative.

 Jackie said:

“Police Scotland are hoping to rush their cost-saving plans through without any meaningful scrutiny or public consultation. I believe it is important that people in Dumbarton and the Vale have the opportunity to make their views known on the centralisation of our local police service.

“The reality is that cuts to policing mean our thin blue line is getting thinner. Last year we stood together as a community to campaign to keep Dumbarton Police HQ open at the weekends. Once again we need to stand up for local policing before we lose our police headquarters completely.”

Gemma said:

“It is scandalous that the general public has not even been invited by Police Scotland to share their opinions on the plans. Hundreds of people have already signed our petition against the proposals so it’s clear that people in Dumbarton and the Vale are worried about the future of local policing. I would encourage anyone who has concerns about the plans to come to our public meeting on Monday 16 September.”

You can sign the petition online at www.jackiebaillie.co.uk or gemmadoyle.org.uk.

<