Report Summary
This report provides members of the Policing Performance Committee with an overview of the RPAS Update.
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Meeting
The publication discussed was referenced in the meeting below
Policing Performance Committee - 15 June 2023
Date : 15 June 2023
Location : online
Procurement
A tender process was commenced in October 2022 with a number of bid responses received. These were evaluated and a bidder chosen. To ensure operational security the details of the manufacturer and supplier is not included within this paper.
The new drones have now been received by Police Scotland ASU and their deployment will be rolled out across the next 3-6 months across Scotland to maximise accessibility to the resource across the country.
The existing drones will now be used to support training and operational competence.
All Police Scotland drones are manufactured by a company which provides drones to 39 of 44 UK police forces.
As a result of recent queries from UK Government regarding the security of data/information supplied by drones, security measures were examined to ensure the appropriate mitigation is in place. This has been done in conjunction with NPCC colleagues and Police Scotland’s Information Manager with relevant additional measures now in place.
All documentation including the data protection impact assessment, assurance review and safety case have all been reviewed in line with Police Scotland executive officers direction.
Crucially, Police Scotland does not deploy drones at counter terrorism incidents, incidents relating to national security or incidents where the drone would be used covertly.
