asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the actual strength of each of the Scottish police forces, and in total at the latest date for which figures are available; and how these figures compare with the comparable month in 1979.

The information requested is set out in the following table:

Force	Actual Strength at 31 March 1979	Actual Strength at 31 March 1985	Percentage Increase
Central Scotland Police	477	548	14·9
Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary	298	309	3·7
Fife Constabulary	639	659	3·1
Grampian Police	903	954	5·6
Lothian and Borders Police	2,236	2,386	6·7
Northern Constabulary	595	604	1·5
Strathclyde Police	6,599	6,778	2·7
Tayside Police	928	951	2·5
TOTAL	12,675	13,189	4·1

The figures include officers who are employed at ports, airports and oil-related industrial sites and whose costs are not borne entirely by police authorities. Also included are officers on national training courses and those seconded to central service posts.