Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland, Mr Paddy Tomkins, was asked by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice Kenny MacAskill in May 2008 to carry out an independent review of policing in Scotland.
The remit of the review was as follows:
- that all Scotland's communities have equal access to expert and specialist policing and to the resources necessary to investigate major crime, whenever they need it
- that the delivery of such policing responsibilities does not divert resources away from visible policing in communities
- in pursuance of this to identify policing responsibilities which might more effectively be delivered nationally, regionally, or in collaboration between forces
- and to make recommendations for the organisation, governance and accountability which best supports the delivery of those policing responsibilities
The review is now complete and the report can be accessed by clicking here.
As well as liaising with a wide range of stakeholders such as Councils, Health Boards and Justice organisations to help inform the review, an advisory group was set-up to assist the review process. This advisory group had representatives from organisations such as ACPOS (Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland), ASPS (Association of Scottish Police Superintendents), SPF (Scottish Police Federation), Scottish Police Authorities Convener's Forum, COSLA (Convention of Scottish Local Authorities) as well as two independent members to represent the views of wider civic society.
In the spirit of openness, transparency and accountability HMICS are publishing as much documentation as possible relating to this review on our website. You can access the correspondence relating to the Independent Review of Policing here.
HMICS welcomes comments from users on how it can improve access to its material and reports. Please click here if you wish to offer any comment on your experience of use of this facility or the information presented.