Meeting of the Parliament 01 December 2015
On learning of the breaches in the summer, the Scottish Government contacted Police Scotland to seek reassurance that it would co-operate fully with the IOCCO investigation and that it would take any necessary actions that might result from it.
That reassurance was given and, since July, Police Scotland has been working on a robust action plan to ensure that there has been no repeat of those incidents and that they cannot happen again in the future. However, it is clear that Police Scotland’s actions in accessing communications data have fallen short of the standard expected, and I welcome last week’s announcement by the Scottish Police Authority that it would ask Her Majesty’s inspectorate of constabulary in Scotland to review the robustness of the procedures around Police Scotland’s counter-corruption practices.
I can reassure the chamber that that will be an independent, thorough and in-depth review. In order to provide assurance to the public and this Parliament, it will focus on operational effectiveness and efficiency, the independence of the internal investigation function, governance and accountability, and training and guidance for officers and staff. The review will be submitted to the Scottish Police Authority and laid in the Parliament in the spring, and I expect any HMICS recommendations for improvements to be implemented in full.
Any breach of the “Acquisition and Disclosure of Communications Data Code of Practice” is unacceptable. A free press is the cornerstone of a healthy democracy, and we are committed to protecting the privacy of all law-abiding members of the public, including journalists.