Police Scotland submitted more than 700 reports after court deadlines last year, leaving prosecutors with no choice but to scrap proceedings

Hundreds of criminal cases are being dropped because police officers are filing reports late, prompting concerns over the funding and resourcing of policing in Scotland.

Police Scotland submitted more than 700 reports after court deadlines last year, leaving prosecutors with no choice but to scrap proceedings. It is more than double the number in 2014-15 and the highest level of timed-out cases in a five-year period.

Figures released by the Crown Office also show a further 1,700 cases were abandoned in 2018-19 because of other delays by the police or reporting agencies, an increase of almost 20 per cent on 2014-15.

While most of the alleged offences were minor, more serious cases have also been dropped. They include trials on charges involving firearms, drug dealing