SCOTLAND’s new top cop arranged for an on-duty officer to drive her home to England from Edinburgh during Storm Babet, we can reveal.
Chief Constable Jo Farrell and a senior male officer from Durham Constabulary were taken in a Police Scotland car on the roughly 120-mile journey – less than two weeks into her new job.
Allan BovillChief Constable Jo Farrell got an on-duty cop to drive her 120 miles home[/caption]
It meant the cop who was behind the wheel was out of action for around six hours
The recently-appointed top cop is at the Scottish Police Federation’s Annual Awards bash tonight
It meant the cop who was behind the wheel was out of action for around six hours during their shift on Friday, October 20.
A source said: “It’s an awful lack of judgement – and a kick in the teeth to frontline officers.”
CC Farrell apologised tonight for organising lengthy journey.
The 55-year-old called in an officer and a Police Scotland car to make the six-hour round trip as the UK was being battered by Storm Babet.
The journey on the night came as emergency services were swamped with incidents related to the deadly weather.
CC Farrell – who took over from Iain Livingstone on October 9 – was joined on the journey south by a colleague from Durham Constabulary.
It’s understood Ms Farrell was dropped at her home in the Northumberland area while the male colleague is understood to have been taken to Gateshead.
The Police Scotland cop then had to make his way back to the Edinburgh area.
It comes as officers warn of huge cuts to the service.
The Chief Constable said: “I requested my office to arrange for a car to drive me home to the Northumberland area after work.
“I was unable to complete the journey by train as services had been cancelled and my own police vehicle was unavailable.
“I have apologised for this error of judgement.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Police Authority said: “The Authority is aware the Chief Constable used a police vehicle following the cancellation of a scheduled train journey.
“The Chair has discussed this with the Chief Constable who has apologised.
“The Authority considers the matter closed.”
Tonight the recently-appointed top cop is at the Scottish Police Federation’s Annual Awards ceremony which celebrates the commitment and courage of cops across Scotland.
Sources insist the Chief Constable has told colleagues no alcohol was involved on the Friday evening.
But rank and file officers are said to have been “extremely surprised” by the incident so soon after her appointment.
An insider said: “It just looks terrible – especially as it happened during Storm Babet when obviously driving conditions were very poor.
“It begs the question of why didn’t she just stay overnight in Edinburgh or use Police Scotland accommodation?”
Edinburgh was under a yellow weather warning on October 20 while East Lothian was given an amber warning meaning life could be at risk due to fast-flowing flood water.
Residents in East Lothian were also told keep away from the coastline – due to the potential threat from waves.
The Northumberland area was also badly affected by Babet, with yellow and amber weather warnings in place for the North East of England.
Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Russell Findlay said: “This is a concerning start to the new chief’s tenure and while her apology is welcome, it is important that the SPA establishes the full facts of this incident.
“Hard-working frontline officers who put themselves in danger every day are already feeling the impact of SNP cuts, and expect the chief to lead by example.”
David Threadgold, chair of the Scottish Police Federation, was sharing a table last night with Jo Farrell at their annual awards ceremony.
He said: “If the chief constable has made an error of judgement then it’s appropriate that she apologises for that.”
Retired serious crime and drug squad cop Simon McLean said last night: “It’s totally inappropriate and not the impression you want to make on your new force of Police Scotland in the first few weeks – misabusing resources like that, it’s terrible.
“I mean the rank and file get disciplined and sacked for misusing the computer, for misusing vehicles. It can be a sackable offence to misuse resources.
“The Scottish Police Federation are fighting tooth and nail for the simplest resources for our frontline police officers – radios and equipment and uniforms.
“Everything is shortage, shortage, shortage right now and here we have our new police constable abusing transport facilities and man-hours for her own convenience.”
Earlier this year we revealed Police Scotland was freezing the intake of new civilian staff and axing scores of current positions as it makes “hard choices” due to lack of budget from the Scottish Government.
It could see area divisions merged and senior positions axed as it desperately tries to keep the current levels of rank and file officers, which currently total around 16, 600.
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