POLICE Scotland chief constable Stephen House is facing an investigation by the single force's watchdog after a formal complaint was made about him by a former senior female colleague.

Angela Wilson, who recently retired from the force, reported House to the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) but has declined to give details of her complaint.

Speaking to the Sunday Herald, she also said the culture for women in Police Scotland had "moved backwards", called for Audit Scotland to investigate internal force statistics, and said the majority of rank and file officers had no faith in House.

The chief constable's term has been marred by a spate of rows over budget cuts, armed policing and the industrial use of stop and search.

After opposition political leaders failed to back him, House announced that he was unlikely to seek a second term next year.

Wilson, who was a chief superintendent at Police Scotland, made a series of blistering comments criticising House's leadership style.

It can now be revealed that Wilson, a policing veteran with decades of service, complained to the SPA about House when she was in the force.

"I believe it [the complaint] is at the point where it's about to be put before a committee, who then decide whether or not to put the complaint before the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC)," she said.

She declined to elaborate on the allegation, but said: "There are a number of complaints about failure to follow policy."

A spokeswoman for the SPA refused to comment on the case, but said the body has a "statutory obligation to investigate complaints against senior officers".

Wilson's complaint is understood to be separate from another referral she made regarding an investigation relating to the old Tayside force.

In an interview with the Sunday Herald, she paid tribute to the frontline staff in Police Scotland but stepped up her criticisms of House.

As the founder and chair of the Women's Development Forum, which promotes gender equality in the police, she said the force's culture was not helpful towards females.

"Mr House says he is openly supportive of equality, but there are a lot of things in place that don't support that.

"I have a concern that the role of women in policing over the next few years under the current culture will diminish," Wilson said.

Asked why she had retired, she said: "I couldn't stand the culture anymore."

On House, she accused him of being a micro-manager who finds it hard to delegate decision-making: "It was reported to me that when a decision was being made about whether to have polo shirts - for frontline counter staff - whether they were going to be black or blue, nobody could make that decision apparently without referring it to him.

"That's when I realised that we had a real problem."

She believes part of the problem is House does not listen to dissenting voices: "There is a culture of 'don't take him bad news'. It's okay to agree, but don't disagree."

On House's recent appearances in front of MSPs and the SPA, during which he gave inaccurate information on stop and search, she said: "I was very unimpressed.

"I don't think he showed humility... By the figures not being right, and then being ... corrected a second time, [it] makes people think that either you don't know what you are doing, or you are trying to hide something.

"Bearing in mind what has happened with stop and search statistics, I would hope that Audit Scotland and HMICS are now going to very closely scrutinise all other statistics," she said.

Asked if House wanted to comment, a spokesman for Police Scotland said: "This is a matter for the SPA."

Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said: "There has been a steady and significant increase in the number of women joining the police service in Scotland.

"We are disappointed in the views which have been expressed."