Scottish Police Authority and Scottish Government minutes: May 2025

Attendees and apologies

• Angela Constance MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs
• Fiona McQueen, Chair of the Scottish Police Authority
• Lynn Brown, Chief Executive of the Scottish Police Authority
• Kirstin McPhee, Head of Police Sponsorship and Governance, Scottish Government
• Louise Johnston, Police Division, Scottish Government 

Items and actions

Scottish Police Authority (SPA) priorities and Chair reflections 

The SPA Chair confirmed that board appointments are progressing, with the focus now shifting to recruitment of a new Chief Executive. The Cabinet Secretary and the Chair acknowledged concerns regarding delays in the allocations of complaints made to Police Scotland. The Chair explained that the SPA is working with Police Scotland and the Police Investigations & Review Commissioner (PIRC) to address this, with a commitment to restoring timely and effective handling of complaints. 

Strategic overview of policing 

There was consensus on the need for strategic, data led oversight. The Chair and Cabinet Secretary agreed that SPA’s scrutiny must be underpinned by robust, targeted data. The Chair set out that the SPA is working to develop a dashboard of key data indicators for committee focus.

The three-year plan was discussed in the context of transparency, workforce deployment, and policing performance. Initiatives like the Force Mobilisation Model are seen as key steps toward a fairer, more effective front-line model of policing. The Chief Constable’s vision and leadership, especially on issues such as reform, inclusivity, and workforce culture were noted as positive and necessary drivers of change.

UK Supreme Court ruling

The Chair highlighted the importance of professional discretion, clear policy, and proportionality in navigating these complex issues, such as gendered spaces in the workplace and stop and search guidelines. 
The Chair noted that Police Scotland have set up a working group, exploring workforce and operational implications. 
This Supreme Court ruling and implications for Police Scotland will be discussed at the next SPA Board meeting on 22 May 2025. 

Live Facial Recognition

The Chair set out the work the SPA has being doing to facilitate the national conversation on Live Facial Recognition (LFR). The findings from the national conversation has shown moderate support for its implementation, especially in relation to high impact use cases such as the identification of missing children. However, concerns remain regarding privacy, and the risk of bias against minority groups. 

The Chair explained that SPA and Police Scotland have proactively engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, including civil liberties organisations, to gather diverse perspectives and ensure all concerns throughout the conversation this far have been appropriately considered and addressed.

The Cabinet Secretary and Chair noted that some observers would like to see LFR specific legislation introduced and agreed this should be kept under consideration as the consultative process continues.