Two police stations should be closed immediately amid safety concerns over "horrific" conditions, the Scottish Police Federation has said.
Oban police station is "unfit for human habitation", with mould and crumbling plasterwork, while there is a rat infestation at Lochgilphead police station, a Scottish Police Federation (SPF) investigation found.
The interim report also called for police accommodation in Dunoon, Campbeltown and Lochgilphead to be closed immediately after "disgraceful" conditions were found, with mushrooms discovered growing in the shower room in Dunoon.
Read more: Scots police officers are among the worst funded in Britain
Officials from the SPF found dreadful conditions at several premises during a "deep dive" inspection in Argyll and Bute.
Callum Steele, general secretary of the Scottish Police Federation (SPF) said officials found "horrific" conditions and that the issues were a consequence of "years of neglect".
He told BBC Good Morning Scotland: "Oban police station in particular has been described as the worst police station any of our officials have ever set foot in.
"This is a full-time functioning, working police station that has mould, flaking paint, it's unfit for human habitation, certainly unfit to be bringing victims and witnesses to crimes and it's absolutely unfit for bringing those that might be detained in custody into these kind of premises, not least because of the physical condition of the buildings and the very significant risks that could be presented to those that find themselves in them.
"Self-evidently these kind of issues don't appear overnight; it's apparent to us that the issues in Oban and across Argyll and Bute have been as a consequence of years of neglect, and a stark reality of a lack of capital funding available to the police service is something that we've been highlighting for many, many years."
Read more: One police car breaks down while on patrol every day, claims Labour
Police officers working at Lochgilphead police station salvaged chairs from skips as their own office chairs were in such a state of disrepair, while the building was found to have damp and crumbling plasterwork, with one hole going right through to the exterior of the building.
At Lochgilphead police station, rats remain in the building despite extermination work, with SPF inspectors reporting that they can be heard in the walls and ceilings.
Officers are reluctant to drink from the water supply or eat within the building and are concerned that they are at risk of contracting leptospirosis (Weil's disease).
Mr Steele said: "The concerns are now at such a stage that they cannot be ignored any more.
Read more: Hundreds of Police Scotland vehicles are more than a decade old
"The simple reality is that the police stations, particularly in Lochgilphead and Oban, should be closed immediately for the safety of the officers that work there and any members of the public that find themselves there, and the same is true of the police accommodation in Campbeltown, Lochgilphead and Dunoon."
Police Scotland 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 well-being of our staff is a priority for Police Scotland.
"A small number of officers affected by property issues raised in Dunoon have already been moved to temporary accommodation while improvement works are carried out.
"A range of options for Oban police station are being examined following HMICS recommendations last year.
"The policing estate has been built up over the last century and we acknowledge some buildings fail to match current or future needs.
"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."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel