As reported in the Advertiser, the police station in the town has been closed several times this year during advertised opening hours – leaving the public unable to access services.

Further revelations about the closures of Helensburgh’s police office have shown further instances where the station has been shut when it should have been open.

Since March this year, there have been 19 separate occasions the public have been unable to access the office – sometimes for full days.

Helensburgh and Lomond’s MSP Jackie Baillie used freedom of information requests to obtain the figures.

Ms Baillie has received a string of complaints from residents who have been unable to report a crime or hand in documentation because the front-counter was closed.

The station, on East Clyde Street, is advertised as open to the public from 9am-7pm Monday to Thursday and 12pm-10pm Friday to Sunday.

From May until July the front-desk has been unavailable for a total of 19 hours and the Labour MSP is demanding a clear explanation of the scale of the problem.

Ms Baillie told the Advertiser: “It is hardly surprising Police Scotland do not have enough staff to keep our police station open given the scale of the cuts to police budgets in recent years. The number of people working in Scotland’s police service is at its lowest point since the SNP came to power, with 2,000 fewer police and civilian staff than in 2010.

“Our local police officers do a difficult job but they need more support and resources from the SNP government in Edinburgh.

“People in Helensburgh and Lomond deserve the peace of mind that comes with knowing their nearest police station is open when they need it and these closures will only serve to undermine public confidence in local policing.” A spokesman for Police Scotland said the office in Helensburgh had to be closed during advertised hours on occasion due to ‘operational demands’.