A delayed police response to the death of Lamara Bell and John Yuill by the side of the M9 was “not an isolated incident”, frontline staff told the force’s watchdog.
The Courier can also reveal that senior officers at Police Scotland admitted at a high-level meeting more than six weeks before the tragedy that the performance of control rooms was “in a critical condition” .
In its submission to the investigation by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary Scotland (HMICS) into how contact centres operate the police staff trade union, Unison, catalogued a series of damning revelations about behind-the-scenes operations.
The report said: “The tragic deaths of John Yuill and Lamara Bell are unfortunately not an isolated incident as Unison Police Staff Scotland have been involved in other instances.
“It is fair to say that following similar ‘internal reviews’ the investigative focus has always been firmly fixed on ‘first point of contact’ and the judgment of that individual with no meaningful consideration of wider operational failures.”
It added: “It is our view that the deaths of John Yuill and Lamara Bell were as a result of systematic failings which are likely to continue should Police Scotland pursue the route it is travelling.”
The HMICS report said the Bilston Glen control room near Edinburgh, which took the call reporting Mr Yuill and Ms Bell’s crashed car, had “insufficient staff”.
After the initial sighting was not properly logged the couple lay in the wrecked car for three days before a second passer-by alerted authorities, who finally attended.
Unison’s report notes that union representatives were invited to attend the first meeting of the high-level Gold Group on April 24, which was chaired by Chief Superintendent Alan Speirs.
It notes that: “This first meeting informed Unison that the performance of the service centres was in a critical condition and urgent solutions were sought to address the problem. Call abandonment rates and waiting times had soared.”
George McIrvine, secretary of Unison Police Staff Scotland branch, said: “We said there were failings with the system and, tragically, it has come to fruition.”
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said the force could not comment on the report as it had not seen it.