Response

On 11 November 2024 you asked the Authority to review this decision.

The decision has been reviewed by an independent member of staff who was not involved in the original decision-making process.

The original decision has been partially upheld. The review found that the original response could have been clearer in clarifying that the Authority has no role in operational policing.

To explain, the response should have highlighted the Authority’s role in the oversight and scrutiny of policing, and Police Scotland’s operational independence as outlined in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012. The original response should have provided links to the Authority’s Policing Performance Committee where policing performance and operational policing matters are reported on and discussed. These may have helped the understanding of our response and were relevant to the request.

Similarly, hyperlinks to the following reports by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) should have been provided.

Policing Performance Committee - 17 March 2022 - see Item 4.2

Policing Performance Committee - 9 March 2023 - see Item 2.1

These make clear the roles and responsibilities of each partner and demonstrate that while the Chief Constable has autonomy for operational policing, the Authority does have a role in ensuring that recommendations from external audits and reviews are discharged. They also clearly document that the provision of medical treatment is the function of the NHS as advised in our original response.

In terms of our duty to assist, we should have advised that information may be held by the NHS, HMICS and/or Police Scotland.

While outside the scope of this review, if you have concerns about responses from Police Scotland then the correct process is to appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner (SIC).