Scotland has abandoned a plan to ban beards on police officers

Police in Scotland has decided to abandon the ban on wearing beards and mustaches on employees because of numerous complaints. This was reported on December 6 by the TV channel Sky News with reference to the representative of the department.

"This ban would have forced officers and frontline support staff to remove all facial hair, including beards and moustaches, to comply with the requirements of tight-fitting face masks. The Scottish Police Federation (SPF) said it had been inundated with complaints," the publication said.

The TV channel pointed out that the Scottish police paid a total of £60 thousand to officers who filed appeals to the court after the order to shave off the beard and mustache.

Initially, the ban on mustaches and beards was to come into force in May 2023, Sky News reported. As drafted, police officers were supposed to shave in line with the rules on wearing personal respiratory protection, but the ban was delayed due to a large number of complaints. The exception was to have been to wear a beard for religious, cultural or medical reasons.

In March, Britain lifted a 100-year-old ban on military personnel wearing beards. The relaxation was enacted after a bill proposed by top British military officials was approved by King Charles III.