Exclusive:ScotRail manager disciplined for driving 'drunken' colleague home from celebration in company vehicle

ScotRail whistleblower has criticised the ‘clear misuse of vehicle’

A ScotRail manager is believed to being issued with a written warning for driving a “drunken” colleague home from a Christmas celebration in a company car while on duty, The Scotsman has learned.

The incident was revealed by a whistleblower in the wake of the controversy over Heath Secretary Neil Gray being taken to meetings at football matches in a ministerial car.

ScotRail was nationalised by the Scottish Government in 2022 | PA

The source said the use of the car, branded in the Scottish Government-owned train operator’s livery, was “clearly a misuse of the vehicle”. The case involved a manager at ScotRail’s Haymarket depot in Edinburgh who left his post to take his colleague home.

The source said: "Managers from Haymarket maintenance depot went for Christmas drinks on Friday, December 6.

"One manager in particular had more than a few too many and it was felt it was time for him to go. Instead of getting him a taxi or putting him on a train home to Polmont, [another] manager was requested to leave his post and pick him up in the depot car, which is in full ScotRail livery.

"He drove him home to Polmont. This is all fact and it is logged in the manager’s logbook, as well as the fuel logbook in the car itself.

"At the end of the day, the vehicle and the wages of the driver are being paid for indirectly by the Scottish Government and this is clearly a misuse of said vehicle. It's not a taxi for drunk managers."

The source added: "An investigation has been carried out and the manager who took the individual home in the depot car has been issued a written warning as a result.”

Another industry source told The Scotsman: “The basis of what happened is correct, in respect of the ScotRail vehicle being used when it shouldn’t have been.”

Scotland’s transport links remain key to our country - subscribe to our dedicated newsletter today

A ScotRail spokesperson said: “I can confirm that the matter was investigated and has been dealt with internally.”

However, they declined to discuss the outcome of the investigation and whether any action had been taken against the manager.

ScotRail was taken into public ownership in 2022 and is overseen by arm’s length company Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government’s Transport Scotland agency.

Its Haymarket depot, beside Murrayfield Stadium in the west of Edinburgh, is one of the company’s main train bases.