The police want to identify racist would-be recruits before they join the parade grounds

It is hoped the psychometric interviews will identify racist would-be recruits before they enter the parade grounds.

Strathclyde University's clinical psychology department is helping to develop the �55,000 project.

Similar tests were introduced last spring in all 43 police forces in England and Wales.

Police chiefs felt it necessary to act after a BBC documentary, The Secret Policeman, exposed racism at Greater Manchester Police.

Five police officers quit after covert filming, broadcast in October 2003, by an undercover reporter posing as a trainee officer was broadcast in October 2003.

This is a robust and encouraging step forward in trying to prevent people with such views entering the police service in Scotland Andrew Cameron Acpos

The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (Acpos) is hoping the new tests will reassure ethnic minorities of the integrity of the police service.

Andrew Cameron, chief constable of Central Scotland Police and chairman of Acpos's personnel and training committee, said: "We already focus on finding out about people's attitudes at the recruitment stage.

"But it can be difficult to identify people with racist views. This is a robust and encouraging step forward in trying to prevent people with such views entering the police service in Scotland.

"The project is being developed by Strathclyde University and will be subject to full scrutiny and evaluation to ensure it works properly."

Police review

Applicants undergo a series of role-playing and written tests followed by a full interview, aimed at determining if they are racist.

Under the system in place south of the border, they are graded from A to D on each exam, with those who score a D in any of the tests automatically rejected.

Strathclyde Police was branded "institutionally racist" over its handling of the murder of Indian waiter Surjit Singh Chhokar in November 1998.

The Commission for Racial Equality Scotland (CRE Scotland) is due to report its findings in the summer on its review of the police north of the border.