THE Scottish Conservatives have doubled down after being accused of spreading “fake news” by falsely claiming police officers in Scotland are on strike.
The party shared a graphic on social media which wrongly includes police officers on a list of professions on strike – and have refused to correct the inaccuracy.
Calum Steele, the head of the Scottish Police Federation, confirmed police are not legally allowed to strike.
But when asked whether the social media post would be taken down because it was spreading incorrect information, a party spokesperson said: “This post correctly highlighted the wave of disruption that has been caused by the SNP’s inaction when it comes to pay disputes across Scotland’s public sector.”
It has led to accusations the party is willingly spreading disinformation to attack the Scottish Government.
The Scottish Government has called the accusations “false and misleading”.
A spokesperson said: “Under long-standing legal arrangements, police officers are unable to take strike action and suggestions to the contrary are false and misleading.
“Our police officers play a vital and valued role and we want to recognise that by ensuring they are the best paid in the UK. We are pleased the Police Negotiating Board reached an agreement on police officer pay for this year which gives a 5% pay increase to all officers.”
Allan Dorans, the SNP’s policing spokesperson, said: “The inclusion of police officers in the list is either ignorant or dishonest as they...
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday rejected the claims of Congress MLAs from Tamil Nadu being shifted to a resort in Bengaluru post Assembly elections. He further said that ...