One of the UK's highest ranked police officers was handed £67,000 so that she could move house as part of a 'benefits in kind' payout totalling more than £100,000.
Scotland's deputy chief constable Rose Fitzpatrick was earning £175,000 when the Scottish Police Authority also paid her £53,000 tax bill as part of the public money package.
Financial watchdog Audit Scotland branded it an 'unacceptable' use of public cash in a report that showed the authority also paid an HR director the equivalent of a £324,822 annual salary. Ms Fitzpatrick's tax bill was footed by the authority for 2016-17 in a move that is still unexplained, according to the times.
Two relocation packages where allocated when she moved from London to Scotland, the first £18,000 in 2014-15 and the next for £49,000 in 2016-17.
The second payment was incorrectly recorded as 'childcare vouchers', meaning it was not liable for tax.
This also kept it from appearing in the accounts in the usual way, which has led critics to accuse the authority of behaving 'as some kind of dodgy haven'.
The HR director was paid £106,192 after being employed for the 17 weeks leading up to March 31. Police Scotland and the authority made the payments despite being repeatedly told to bring spending under control while they ran up.
Audit Scotland described each of the payments as 'not good use of public money' and auditor-general Caroline Gardner called the packages 'unacceptable'.
John Foley, the authority's chief executive who stood down last month, was singled out for authorising the payments.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: 'Audit Scotland has made it clear that Deputy Chief Constable Fitzpatrick acted in accordance with the terms of her appointment and that she at all times complied fully with the requirements of the Scottish Police Authority.'
A Scottish Police Authority spokesman said: 'We accept that this is an area where more can be done to ensure we achieve best value.
'As a result, the SPA has initiated discussions with the staff associations through official channels with a view to agreeing guidance that ensures officers are reimbursed for expenses reasonably incurred while also demonstrating efficient use of taxpayers’ money.'
This is the latest blow for Scotland’s police force, which has been dogged by the departure of top managers, financial issues and criticism.
Conservative MSP Liam Kerr said: 'This report could lead some to think the Scottish Police Authority has been behaving like some kind of dodgy haven.
'People will be astonished if senior police officers are having their tax liabilities settled by the taxpayer and they’ll be incredulous if none of this was properly declared.'
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