Mum of Scottish woman brutally murdered by partner says 'lessons must be learnt'

The mum of a Scottish woman who was brutally murdered by her partner says lessons must be learned from her daughter's death.

The parents of Claire Inglis, who was murdered by her abusive partner in 2021, met with First Minister John Swinney at Holyrood this week on the third anniversary of the 28-year-old's death.

Claire suffered horror injuries at the hands of her partner Christopher McGowan - a repeat offender who had been bailed to her home despite having nearly 40 convictions for a string of offences.

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Claire's parents have now called for an inquiry to be held to give the family answers over her death, reports the Stirling Observer.

Claire was attacked at her Stirling flat by McGowan on November 28, 2021, where she was abused and tortured to death as the brute was jailed for a minimum 23 years.

During the awful ordeal Claire was battered and throttled before being burnt on her face with a lighter and choked with a wet wipe.

After the conviction, it was revealed McGowan had 39 different convictions for a string of offences including violence and aggravated domestic assault.

Claire's shattered family are continuing to question why McGowan was allowed to be bailed to her address, where she lived with her young son.

Mum Fiona said: "There are lessons to be learned. She was murdered at the hands of a habitual criminal who was bailed to her address after being removed from a previous household just weeks before as there were concerns raised that there was a child present in that household."

Prior to Claire's death, social services had raised concerns over McGowan and tried to visit her flat three days before the murder only to find nobody home.

The Sudden Fatalities Investigation Unit of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and now reviewing the case before deciding if a Fatal Accident Inquiry should be held.

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay grilled Mr Swinney in Holyrood on Thursday on the issue, a short time before the First Minister briefly met with the Inglis'.

Following the meeting, Fiona said: "It was promising having a one-to-one with John Swinney. He has promised he will do all he can in his power.

"It's probably the first time in three years that we have felt hopeful of getting answers."

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It came three-years-to-the-day since Claire was killed. Fiona added: "It was emotional being back there today on the third anniversary of her death and as we explained, we only want answers.

"We are grateful Mr Swinney took the time out of his day to spend time with us and seemed to genuinely care and has told us he will do everything he can, so fingers crossed for a result."

Stirling Council this week said that it remains committed to reviewing of the circumstances surrounding Claire's death and has undertaken to conduct an independently chaired review process on terms acceptable to the Scottish Government.

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A council spokesperson said: "Following a request for information from the Sudden Fatalities Investigation Unit of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, the council has paused the independent review process. The council will await the outcome of the Procurator Fiscal's investigation on whether a fatal accident inquiry will be held before deciding on further action. The council is cooperating fully with the Procurator Fiscal's request.

"The public protection partners in the Stirling area will continue to fully co-operate with that investigation and will undertake any necessary learning review following the conclusion of that process.

"Our thoughts remain with Claire's family."