Vindicated
Inquiry backs police whistleblower’s concerns, as it damns ‘poor governance’ of watchdog – and rules £67,000 tax-free payout to top officer DID break rules
A DAMNING report has criticised Scotland’s police watchdog for ‘poor governance’ and ‘lack of transparency’ over a series of financial scandals.
The Scottish Police Authority (SPA) called in chartered accountants to carry out an investigation after whistleblower Amy McDonald sounded the alarm.
She launched an ongoing tribunal claim against the SPA, claiming she was sidelined when she spoke out to voice concern over alleged misuse of funds.
The accountancy firm, Scott-Moncrieff, said Mrs McDonald had highlighted a ‘number of areas of poor governance and a lack of transparency within the SPA’.
Its report said Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick was paid £67,000 by bank transfer to help her move house and the proceeds were not declared ‘on a timely basis’, meaning the taxpayer settled the tax bill. A redacted version of the report was issued to the Mail following a freedom of information request.
It states that the firm was drafted in to investigate in June 2017 when it was ‘made aware of a series of allegations made to the SPA by a whistleblower’.
On Mrs Fitzpatrick, the report said the payment of relocation expenses was agreed with ex-SPA chief executive John Foley ‘despite the time limit for claims being exceeded’.
It said: ‘Neither details of the payments, nor the decision to approve the extension of the time limit for submission, were subject to board reporting or approval.
‘We do not consider that the approval process gave sufficient justification for the payment.’
It continued: ‘A claim for expenses fell outwith the 18month deadline established within the policy but approval was granted by the former chief executive of the SPA to submit claims after this deadline.’
The report said: ‘An expenses payment was paid via a bank transfer rather than through payroll, against policy and advice from the SPA finance team. The nonpayroll expense was not declared to Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs on a timely basis and we understand that the tax liability associated with this payment has been met by the SPA.’
Scott-Moncrieff said the appointment letter ‘referred to the payment of reasonable relocation expenses’. But, the policy did not ‘provide financial limits relating to the totals that could be claimed’. The report contains a series of recommendations, all agreed by management, including a call for the SPA to ‘ensure that any unusual payments should be reported through the committee process’.
In another case, Mr Foley approved a ‘settlement agreement’ rather than a voluntary redundancy package with an unnamed official after the creation of Police Scotland, but there was ‘no evidence that the case was reported to the board’.
Mrs McDonald launched the Glasgow tribunal case, seeking compensation for ‘injury to hurt feelings’ and claiming she was sidelined after making allegations of ‘financial wrongdoing’.
Mrs Fitzpatrick, who recently retired, became Scotland’s most senior female officer when she moved from the Metropolitan Police in 2012. An Audit Scotland report said she received £18,000 to relocate in 2014-15 and £49,000 for a similar move in 2016-17.
Mr Foley quit with a payoff last year after a watchdog’s criticism of his ‘shortcomings’, while Andrew Flanagan stepped down as chairman after a bullying row.
Last night, Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘This report is a damning indictment of the lack of procedure and basic mismanagement at the heart of Police Scotland.’
An SPA spokesman said: ‘The SPA needs to do more to build confidence and trust in its role as the body overseeing policing in Scotland. The SPA has acknowledged the need for improvement in its decision-making processes, and the new leadership team has moved quickly to begin to deliver change and improvement.
‘A full review of SPA governance documents and procedures is in progress to ensure more rigorous controls and assurance are in place around financial transactions.’
‘Did not provide financial limits’