A FORMER police chief and MSP has expressed concern about further delays to a vital IT project in Scotland's force.

The launch date for the i6 projet, which will see a single system operate across the country, has been put back again.

Police Scotland has described it as the "largest and most significant transformational change ever undertaken by the service", replacing 135 existing IT and paper-based systems and providing officers with a state-of-the art crime fighting tool.

However the project has been plagued by delays and contractual wrangles.

Serious concerns have been raised over i6 by MSPs, after it became apparent that Police Scotland had become embroiled in a dispute with the contractor, Accenture, and a series of key targets were missed resulting in the national roll-out date being put back by nine months to September next year - three-and-a-half after the launch of the single force.

A deal was recently agreed to spend £6m on replacing 26,000 computers and monitors ahead of the upgrade.

Labour MSP Graeme Pearson, a former assistant chief constable and a member of the committee, said he was concerned to learn of yet another delay in the project.

He said: "If it means it will eventually be delivered in an effective and timely manner, well and good.

"But behind all this is a rumbling worry that there is a problem in delivering i6 and that needs to be resolved.

"This is absolutely key in reforming the police service in Scotland. Until it is in place, the general benefits of the reformed police service will not be delivered. Let's hope this is the last delay we face."

Deputy Chief Constable Neil Richardson, who is due appear before the Scottish Parliament's Justice Sub-Committee on Policing today to discuss i6, said sticking to the original timetable would have presented "an intolerable level of risk" to the programme as a result of "aggressive scheduling and unachievable timelines".

Accenture is being paid £39m to provide the new integrated i6 system, with costs rising to around £60m.