Union concerns over police expected to enforce pandemic guidance as law
POLICE officers have been expected to enforce guidance rather than the emergency laws amid concerns a growing number of people have been prosecuted under common law, union bosses have warned.
The Scottish Police Federation (SPF), the union representing rankand-file officers, has said that the use of culpable and reckless conduct changes under common law has “increased exponentially” for those “considered to be participating in the most egregious breaches of the coronavirus regulations” – with the emergency laws not going far enough in covering expectations from ministers.
The SPF has told Holyrood’s Covid-19 Committee that it has “reservations there appears to be an implicit expectation that the police form value judgments on the severity” of people breaching the emergency laws.
In a submission to the committee, the SPF has also warned “there is a risk that culpable and reckless conduct changes could be seen as a way of enforcing the guidance” as well as “in response to public or political commentary where no specific offence exists”.
The rise in culpable and reckless conduct action through common law has raised the prospect of the guidance being enforced as law.
Appearing in front of the committee, Calum Steele, the general secretary of the SPF, said: “It does suggest that there are judgments being made that provisions of the legislation do not go far enough to cover the examples of behaviour that police officers have encountered.
“There are examples, which I cannot specifically go into, where it appears individuals have not contravened the coronavirus regulations in any way, shape or form, but have found themselves liable under common law charges.
“That in its own right kind of suggests there has been an indirect expectation placed on the police services almost to police, to some extent, to the guidance rather than the law.”
Earlier, Michael Clancy, director of law reform at the Law Society of Scotland, told MSPS that the guidance published alongside the Scottish Government’s emergency legislation “is important so that people can understand which side of the law they fall”.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We believe police officers have the necessary powers to fulfil their duty to uphold the law, keep the public safe and help manage the spread of coronavirus.
Police Scotland’s deputy chief constable Malcolm Graham said: “We have seen a considerable increase in the number of gatherings being reported to us in recent weeks but our approach has not changed.
“We have increased patrols in our communities to support people, explain the regulations and to encourage them to do the right thing to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.”