HUMZA Yousaf has been accused of ignoring the disrepair at many police stations after dismissing claims they were falling apart as “hyperbole”.

The Justice Secretary was heavily criticised by opposition MSPs and the Scottish Police Federation (SPF) after he insisted Police Scotland had the finances to do its job.

Last week Chief Constable Iain Livingstone launched a scatting attack on the force’s capital budget, calling it “derisory for the size of organisation that we’ve got”.

The SPF also posted a video on social media of rain pouring through a police station roof in Paisley as an example of the crumbling estate.

Bringing Mr Yousaf to the Holyrood chamber to answer an urgent question about the Chief Constable’s remark, Tory MSP Liam Kerr urged Yousaf to give the force an extra £50m a year.

He said: “The Chief Constable was utterly scathing about the Scottish Government’s funding of Police Scotland. [Its] capital funding has already been cut to the bone.

“In the words of the Chief Constable, it is ‘derisory’, leaving facilities unmaintained, vehicles unreplaced and police numbers in jeopardy.”

Labour’s James Kelly said some police stations were “falling apart” and not fit for purpose.

Mr Yousaf replied: “I think hyperbole by describing police stations as falling apart is unhelpful.”

He said: “The annual budget for policing has increased by over £80m since 2016/2017, bringing the budget to over £1.2bn in 2019/2020.

“This includes a £12m increase in capital funding which was focused on the introduction of mobile devices to frontline officers.

“Despite constraints on Scotland’s public services through a decade of UK austerity, the Scottish Government has worked with Police Scotland and the Police Authority to maintain and improve policing services, including providing significantly more officers than at any other time before 2007.

“With current officer numbers standing at 17,256, that is 1,022 more officers than we inherited - of course in England and Wales that number has reduced by 20,000.

“Discussions around Scotland’s budget for 2020/2021 continue, we will however continue to ensure Scotland’s police service is supported to keep people in communities safe.”

The SPF responded by tweeting pictures of mushrooms growing in the Dunoon police station and leaks next to electrical connections in Dundee.

SPF general secretary Calum Steele said Mr Yousaf was “in denial about what is plain to see”, while SPF vice chair David Hamilton said he should “acknowledge the blindingly obvious” and say what he was doing to fix it.