The city of Reykjavík has called upon the Ministry of the Interior to add new officers to the Metropolitan Police Force to meet the growing demands upon the time and energy of the police in the capital.
Less crime, but police is undermanned
The chief of police argued that growing numbers of foreign travellers who visit Reykjavík has placed a growing strain on the police and that more officers are needed to deal with the growing number and variety of calls the police receives.
The call for more officers is not in response to a spike in crime. Despite a dramatic increase in the number of foreign travellers the crime rate in the capital has dropped in recent years.
Read more: Crime rate in Reykjavík drops, fewer thefts than at any time since 1999
The Thursday decision by the City Council to make an official call for reinforcements for the police in the capital was based on an assessment by the Metropolitan Police, Sigríður Björk Guðjósdóttir. The City had requested Sigríður give her assessment of what steps could be taken to improve law enforcement in the city. Sigríður said the number of stations and structure of the Police in the capital region are adequate, but that too few officers are available at any time.
The city of Reykjavík has called upon the Ministry of the Interior to add new officers to the Metropolitan Police Force to meet the growing demands upon the time and energy of the police in the capital.
Less crime, but police is undermanned
The chief of police argued that growing numbers of foreign travellers who visit Reykjavík has placed a growing strain on the police and that more officers are needed to deal with the growing number and variety of calls the police receives.
The call for more officers is not in response to a spike in crime. Despite a dramatic increase in the number of foreign travellers the crime rate in the capital has dropped in recent years.
Read more: Crime rate in Reykjavík drops, fewer thefts than at any time since 1999
The Thursday decision by the City Council to make an official call for reinforcements for the police in the capital was based on an assessment by the Metropolitan Police, Sigríður Björk Guðjósdóttir. The City had requested Sigríður give her assessment of what steps could be taken to improve law enforcement in the city. Sigríður said the number of stations and structure of the Police in the capital region are adequate, but that too few officers are available at any time.
