Meeting of the Parliament 04 December 2018
I thank both Adam Tomkins and John Finnie for speaking on this legislative consent motion, and the Presiding Officer for the opportunity to respond.
The Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill is just one part of the UK Government’s review following the terrible incidents in London and Manchester last year. As one would expect, and as has been mentioned, the majority of the bill relates to the reserved area of national security and is rightly being scrutinised by the UK Parliament.
However, the three areas mentioned by Adam Tomkins and John Finnie have implications for devolved competence. The Justice Committee, and John Finnie today, raised concerns about provisions that relate specifically to the retention of certain biometric material. I will not speak to the other two points, because there is broad agreement about them.
For clarity, the type of biometric material that can be the subject of a national security determination is defined in the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995—namely, fingerprints or DNA. The definition does not include secondary biometrics, such as images.
Let me be clear: the Scottish Government does not take lightly its responsibility with regard to ensuring that biometric data is only ever retained in circumstances in which such an intrusion on an individual’s rights is proportionate and appropriate.