Police quangocrat fails to declare he’s a member of SNP
‘Conf lict of interest’ fear over watchdog chief
THE head of a powerful watchdog body, appointed by SNP Ministers to oversee Police Scotland, failed to disclose he is a member of the party.
David Crichton now leads the Scottish Police Authority following the resignation of former chairwoman Susan Deacon.
Mr Crichton failed to disclose his SNP party membership in his publicly available register of interests. He also didn’t record it in his register of interests at NHS Health Scotland, which he chairs – another post he was appointed to by SNP Ministers.
However, he did record it in the Equality and Human Rights Commission register, where he sits on the Scottish committee.
His three roles earn him £59,000 from the taxpayer, for attending 17 meetings a year. However, that pay packet will soar if he becomes permanent chair of the SPA. Ms Deacon received £125,000 for the role.
Mr Crichton now finds himself at the centre of a funding row between Police Scotland and the SNP Scottish Government.
In an SPA meeting on Friday, Chief Constable Iain Livingstone said the force’s budget settlement was ‘derisory’, and he was having to ‘make do and mend’ with underfunding of £183 million. The Scottish Government has dropped a pledge on officer numbers, and Audit Scotland has warned that if next month’s budget does not deliver an extra £50 million the force could ultimately lose 750 officers.
Last night, Mr Crichton faced questions over whether the public can have confidence that he will be impartial.
Scottish Labour MSP Neil Findlay said: ‘Too often we see blurred lines between poachers and gamekeepers. David Crichton must apologise, declare his interests and prove to the public that he is putting them first.’
Maurice Golden, Scottish Conservatives chief whip, said: ‘Transparency is absolutely key. There’s nothing wrong with being a member of a political party, but it does have to be declared from the outset, otherwise there’s a risk of the public losing trust in their impartiality.’
Scottish Government rules for declaring interests in its code of conduct for devolved public body members state: ‘It is important that relevant interests such as membership or holding office in other public bodies, clubs, societies and organisations such as trades unions and voluntary organisations, are registered and described.’
However, the SPA insisted Mr Crichton had done nothing wrong. A spokeswoman said: ‘Mr Crichton’s register of interests and related declarations are consistent with standards and guidelines.’
A spokesman for NHS Health Scotland added: ‘Board members register their interests in line with the Ethical Standards in Public Life etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 (Register of Interests) Regulations 2003 and as per the NHS Health Scotland code of board member conduct.’
The Scottish Government said then-Justice Secretary Michael Matheson was told Mr Crichton was an SNP member when appointing him to the SPA in 2018. A spokeswoman said: ‘Mr Crichton’s appointment to the Scottish Police Authority, and to NHS Health Scotland, was made under a process which is independently regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.’
‘Transparency is absolutely key’