Matheson accused

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson has ruled out holding a public inquiry into undercover policing despite an independent report finding English officers spied on activists in Scotland.

A review by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS), which was published yesterday, found undercover officers attached to the Metropolitan Police’s former Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) and the now defunct National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPOIU) were deployed in Scotland at various points between 1997 and 2010, including during the G8 summit at Gleneagles in 2005.

The report said notorious undercover officer Mark Kennedy, a member of the NPOIU, visited Scotland on at least 17 occasions and carried out “multiple activities” on each visit.

In 2015, the Metropolitan Police issued an “unreserved apology” to a number of women tricked into relationships by undercover officers, including Kennedy.

In a statement to the Scottish Parliament, Mr Matheson said setting up a Scottish inquiry would not be in the public interest.

The minister had asked HMICS to carry out its review in 2016 after then home secretary Theresa May refused to extend the judge-led Undercover Policing Inquiry (UCPI) to Scotland.

Mr Matheson said: “I appreciate there is some legitimate public concern about undercover policing activity in Scotland, and I took those concerns into account in reaching a decision. However, on balance, I consider that estabincluding