The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) was introduced in 2013 when the single Police Service of Scotland was established.
The Commissioner, who is appointed by Scottish Ministers, is independent of the police and delivers a free and impartial service.
What we do
Our role is to provide independent oversight, investigating incidents involving the police. We also review the way the police handle complaints from the public.
Our aim is to secure public confidence in policing in Scotland.
What you can expect from us
We aim to deliver a high level of service at all times.
- You should find our services easily available, accessible, timely, fair and clear.
- This is underpinned by our values: integrity, impartiality, respect.
- We aim to promote fair treatment and opportunity for all people. We do this throughout our policies and in our practice as an oversight body and employer.
If you find our level of service falls short of what you expected, please let us know.
Changes to legislation
The Scottish Government introduced the Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill on 6 June 2023.
The purpose of the Bill is to deliver the recommendations, which required legislation, made by Dame Elish Angiolini.
The recommendations were included in the final report 'Complaints Handling, Investigations and Misconduct Issues in Policing'.
The Bill covers a range of topics related to ethics and conduct. It also covers the functions and governance of PIRC, including:
- Putting Police Scotland’s Code of Ethics on a statutory footing.
- Setting out a 'duty of candour' to ensure police cooperate fully during investigations of allegations against constables.
- Giving the PIRC significant new powers and in turn strengthening its governance and accountability arrangements.
- Provisions to support the creation of Scottish Barred and Advisory Lists.
We are currently looking at how these may impact the work we do and the services we provide.
Our key stakeholders
- We engage with many different organisations: - Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
Common questions asked about PIRC
The Police Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006 as amended by The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012, gives the Commissioner powers to conduct investigations. These can be directed by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) or requested by the Chief Constable or Scottish Police Authority (SPA).
In addition, the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (Investigations Procedure, Serious Incidents and Specified Weapons) Regulations 2013 provide additional powers to deal with referrals by the Chief Constable or SPA.
The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2013 extended PIRC’s remit to investigate a constable/member/officer/official with:
- British Transport Police and the British Transport Police Authority.
- The Civil Nuclear Constabulary and the Civil Nuclear Police Authority.
- The Ministry of Defence Police.
- The National Crime Agency.
- HM Revenue and Customs.
- A general customs official and any other person exercising general customs functions under the authority of the Secretary of State or the Director of Border Revenue.
- An immigration officer and an official of the Secretary of State exercising functions relating to asylum and immigration.
The Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2007 allows PIRC to review the handling of complaints by the above policing bodies.
The Commissioner is also provided with powers in The Police Service of Scotland (Senior Officers) Conduct Regulations 2013, which allow for members of the Commissioner's staff to investigate in the conduct of senior officers of the rank of Assistant Chief Constable and above.
We have no punitive powers. However, we do report our findings back to the policing body with any relevant recommendations to implement.
We notify the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service when any evidence of criminality is found.
Investigations
Where appropriate, some of our Investigation reports will provide feedback and highlight any opportunities for organisational learning that we identify during the investigation.
This could include improving or reviewing police standard operating procedures or policies.
Many of our reports are confidential and we are unable to comment or publish them.
Complaint Handling Reviews
If we identify failings, shortcomings or deficiencies in the way the policing body has handled your complaint, we may issue a recommendation.
A recommendation may ask the policing body to carry out further enquiries into your complaint. It may also ask them to provide you with a more detailed response or even re-assess the available evidence based on the findings of our report.
In some cases, we may issue a reconsideration direction. This means that we have concluded that your complaint must be looked at again in full.
In all cases, we look for learning opportunities for the police so that their standard of complaint handling can be improved in the future.