The victim of a sex attack in Clydebank had to give a police officer a lift back to the station because of a shortage of squad cars.

According to a report from the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), the woman accompanied the officer back to the station in her own car after being interviewed so she could pick up a personal protection alarm.

The damning report says officers are expressing frustration at the dearth of police cars available to let them do their job properly.

They are also having to drive vehicles that are not fit for the road because no others are available.

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SPF representatives put one police vehicles they examined off the road due to a bald tyre.

The report highlights a particular issue with the Public Protection Unit at Clydebank.

It states: "The Rape Unit and Domestic Abuse Unit have two cars which are shared between 10 officers.

"They are spending inordinate amounts of time working out how they will use their vehicles rather than completing their enquiries."

The Offender Management Unit in Argyll and West Dunbartonshire - L Division - has access to only one dedicated vehicle which they have to use for attending meetings and for the monitoring of over 100 registered sex offenders.

The federation, which is the statutory body that represents every police officer in Scotland, said: "Quite simply this presents considerable risk for the Police Service of Scotland and the wider public."

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The report adds: "Police officers across L Division are personally motivated to deliver the best policing service they can to the public.

"This personal motivation is tested daily by the frustration that officers are denied the most basic of tools to deliver that service effectively.

"Officers often feel that they are letting the public down and despite their individual efforts, they routinely have to apologise for shortcomings in service."

Deputy Chief Constable Fiona Taylor said:  “Work was undertaken immediately to remedy a number of concerns raised by the Scottish Police Federation last week, as the safety and wellbeing of our staff is a priority for Police Scotland.

 “We are prioritising the capital budget we have been allocated across a multitude of competing demands to achieve as much as we can, as quickly as we can."