More than three-quarters of Scotland's black and ethnic minority police officers and serving civilians believe racism exists within forces.

The finding is the result of research commissioned by the Scottish Executive at the request of senior police officers.

Justice Minister Jim Wallace described the results as "disappointing" but vowed to tackle the problems highlighted by the work.

He said racism had "no place in a modern, contemporary Scotland".

The research sought to find out why there had been few official complaints about racism within Scotland's forces.

It found:

• 76% of those surveyed said they believed racism was present within the police service

• 69% said they had experienced racism within the service

• 70% of officers surveyed said they would not discourage their children from joining the police

• 94% of officers said racism had not been a barrier to their career progress.

A total of 62 questionnaires were sent out, of which 52 were completed and returned.

Researchers also carried out 38 individual interviews and eight focus group interviews.

Mr Wallace said: "A lot of good work has been done by the police service in Scotland over the past few years to tackle racism, particularly in the period since the research was carried out.

Jim Wallace: "No place for racism"

"Racist attitudes and actions will not be tolerated in a modern, contemporary Scotland.

"The Race Relations (Amendment) Act places a general duty on public bodies to eliminate unlawful discrimination and to promote equality and good race relations."

The minister said that while the report was disappointing overall, it was better to identify and tackle the problems, rather than "bury our heads in the sand".

Mr Wallace said his work with the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Steering Group had signalled progress in the recruitment and retention of officers from black and ethnic communities.