She has said police initially failed to take her complaints seriously, leaving her exposed to further years of abuse. Ministers said "operational policing decisions and workload considerations are for the Chief Constable who is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority – not to Scottish Ministers", and that it "would not be appropriate for Scottish Ministers to provide guidance in relation to officer workload". "It is horrible for them, because they're doing work that they're not getting paid for. A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Officers are not being encouraged to avoid making arrests and it is inaccurate to suggest otherwise. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We encourage all victims and survivors to report sexual crimes, including those that may have happened some time ago.