A police Scotland civilian finance chief was handed an early retirement ‘golden goodbye’ of nearly £380,000 after making a failed bullying claim against the Chief Constable.
Deputy Chief Officer David Page, who earned up to £210,000 a year, accused Jo Farrell of ‘prolonged patterns of bullying’.
Mr Page lodged his grievance shortly after she took up her post in October 2023, inheriting financial turmoil as the service faced budget cuts of up to £20million.
But a Scottish Police Authority (SPA) probe established she had ‘no case to answer’ – and Mr Page later took voluntary early retirement after going off sick for six months.
New SPA accounts reveal Mr Page’s exit package was worth £374,000 – while an additional sum of £9,000 was paid out for his lawyer’s fees.
The figure – which was kept secret in May 2024 when he retired – comes at a time when Police Scotland is facing major financial pressures amid a growing crimewave.
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘Hard-pressed Scots will be stunned this former Police Scotland boss has pocketed such a massive golden goodbye.
‘At a time when the police are facing yet more cuts from the SNP, forking out this money to anyone is clearly a strain on taxpayers’ cash.
Deputy Chief Officer David Page took voluntary early retirement after a Scottish Police Authority (SPA) probe into a grievance he raised against Chief Constable Jo Farrell
‘Public bodies like the police must always prioritise delivering good value for taxpayers when signing off on these eye-watering sums.’
Together with his salary and pension benefits, Mr Page received total remuneration of between £420,000 and 425,000 in 2024/25, including the ‘golden goodbye’.
Ms Farrell – former chief constable of Durham Constabulary – apologised in 2023 after she commandeered a police vehicle to be driven 120 miles from Edinburgh to her home in Northumberland, after her train was cancelled.
Gary Ridley, the assistant chief officer at Durham, was also in the car from Edinburgh and was dropped off at his home in Gateshead.
Mr Page, 62, went off sick shortly after Ms Farrell took up the £260,538-a-year job and his concerns partly related to Mr Ridley’s ‘unpaid advice’ to her on issues including budget challenges, strategic planning and reducing bureaucracy.
He had similar responsibilities and it is understood he claimed he was treated with disrespect, which amounted to alleged ‘bullying’ behaviour – a claim that was later rejected.
At a meeting of Holyrood’s criminal justice committee last year, Ms Farrell defended bringing in Mr Ridley, saying: ‘Having been in policing for more than 30 years, I have a network of people whom I know bring value to policing, and Mr Ridley is one of them.’
Outlining the scale of the financial crisis at Police Scotland, Mr Page told the SPA in September 2023 that ‘slash and burn’ budget cuts would be needed and that ‘every penny is a prisoner’.
The SPA said Mrs Farrell had ‘no case to answer’ over bullying allegations
The SPA confirmed in May last year that Mr Page had left the force after eight years’ service.
It said he ‘exited the organisation under terms consistent with the current approved voluntary redundancy/voluntary early retirement scheme’ but refused to comment on the detail of the sums involved at the time for ‘data privacy reasons’.
The new 2024/25 SPA accounts state: ‘David Page received other pay items [of £374,000] under terms consistent with the approved Voluntary Redundancy/ Voluntary Early Retirement Scheme that was in place at the time.
‘In addition… the Authority paid legal fees incurred by David Page in relation to the exit.
‘A total of £7,500, exclusive of VAT, [£9,000 with VAT included] was paid directly to the legal representatives’.
Mr Page was contacted for comment.
An SPA spokesman said: ‘David Page left Police Scotland in May 2024 under terms consistent with the current approved voluntary redundancy/voluntary early retirement scheme.
‘It is also important to highlight that the total figure was not a payment directly to Mr Page, the majority being costs incurred related to his pension.’