The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Elite police unit under fire over bullying claim
An elite police unit is accused of concealing a culture of sexism and bullying in a confidential report sent to Police Scotland’s most senior officers.
The document, written by a f o r m e r m e m b e r, describes a demoralised unit of exhausted armed officers expected to make critical decisions in lifeand-death situations.
The sergeant’s report, circulated to senior officers, was intended to provoke improvements to management and morale but was quickly dismissed by the national force.
It claims officers in the Firearms East unit, covering Edinburgh and Stirling, att e m p t e d to challenge the toxic attitudes but saw their careers stall before leaving the force silenced by nondisclosure agreements, according to The Sunday Post.
In a report sent to the national force’s executive officers, the sergeant, who was twice commended during his career, claimed female officers were bullied; senior officers used language o ff e n s i v e to women and disabled people; and alleged there was a “gung-ho” attitude to strict firearms protocols.
He also claimed a refusal to pay overtime led to machine guns and ammunition being stored unguarded in an island police station without armed guard during a visit by royals and US diplomats.
In the report, a senior training officer is accused of mocking disabled people by making insulting noises, and using language offensive to people with learning disabilities when describing student officers. Another senior officer was accused of swearing when referring to another officer ’s pregnant wife before using offensive language to describe her.
The whistleblower also claimed armed officers were ordered by some senior officers to point their weapons at everyone, regardless of age, when in “contain and call out” situations. This, according to the experienced officer, “included five- year- old children in their pyjamas”.
Concerns were also raised over the demands made on tired armed officers sometimes asked to work seven days a week while expected to make instant life-or-death judgment calls.
The document also warned “morale and the opinion of management is now so low, that officers are questioning whether it is impacting on their decision-making when deployed”, adding: “This obviously has huge implications. It goes without saying that this would be a significant public safety concern with potentially catastrophic repercussions.”
Despite the serious issues raised in the sergeant’s report, Police Scotland’s professional standards department told chiefs there need be no further action: “These matters can be competently assessed as grievance, with potentially some minor misconduct matters that can be dealt with at local level.”
The author of the report declined to comment when contacted. He said: “I am unable to discuss this as, regretfully, I have signed a non-disclosure agreement. I will, however, be present to give evidence in public at civil action.”
In response, Police Scotland said: “The significant majority of our officers and staff conduct themselves in line with our values of fairness, integrity, respect and with a commitment to upholding human rights. When and where inappropriate conduct is brought to our attention... where necessary, appropriate action is taken.”
The force also said the use of non-disclosure agreements is widespread and considered good practice by independent bodies.
The sergeant’s report was written after a female firearms officer claimed she was forced out of the unit by sexism. Rhona Malone, who resigned in April after being granted ill- health retirement, has raised a sexual discrimination case, claiming she was undermined and discredited. She is taking Police Scotland to an employment tribunal.
Ms Malone, 44, claims her career was destroyed after reporting a senior officer who ordered that two female officers should not be on duty without a man because of “obvious differences in physical capacity”.
She said: “There had
been incidents in the run-up to the email which summed up the misogynistic attitude in the squad, including male officers being paid overtime when I wasn’t.
“I had to stand up for myself and for the other women coming after me.”
Earlier this month, a report by former Lord Advocate Dame Elish Angiolini found evidence of misogyny within Police Scotland and called for a drive to rid the force of a macho culture.
The landmark report into police complaints, investigations and misconduct issues found a series of areas of concern – including the experience of women officers in the force.
The report, called The Independent Review of Complaints Handling, Investigations and Misconduct Issues in Relation to Policing, ran to 490 pages and made 81 recommendations. Among them was a call for an independent review into equality in Police Scotland.
I had to stand up for myself and the other women