22 Jan 2019

EE and Motorola tie-up major Police Scotland contract

Mobile operator EE has won a £21 million contract to supply coverage to Police Scotland over a three-year period. The company will be joined by Motorola Solutions, which will supply its Pronto mobile working solution to the force for the same period of time.

According to a statement, operational use of the services is expected to begin in 2019. Handsets – which will be supplied by Samsung and Blackberry – will be assigned “incrementally” to response and community policing officers, as well as those within roads policing and Police Scotland’s specialist services division.

Speaking of the development, assistant chief constable Malcolm Graham said: “This signifies the commitment Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority have in leading the force into a more digitally-focused future.

“The use of mobile devices will revolutionise the way officers and staff access systems, currently only available from desktop and laptop computers within police stations. This will enable them to work on crime prevention and community-based policing to keep people safe, whether in the public, private or virtual space.”

BT’s public sector director in Scotland David Wallace said “Delivered via our EE 4G mobile network – the biggest in the UK –, this deal will enable thousands of police officers across Scotland to access the information they need, at the touch of a button.”