Current status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the report, Forensic Science in England and Wales: Pulling Out of the Graveyard Spiral, published on 9 June 2025 by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Miscarriages of Justice, which highlighted shortcomings with forensic science capabilities in England and Wales that could make miscarriages of justice more likely, what assurances the Scottish Government can give that any operational deficiencies highlighted in the report do not exist in Scotland, and what plans it has to highlight the operational efficiency of Scotland's forensic science service.
The Westminster Commission on Forensic Science, set up by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Miscarriages of Justice in 2022, visited the Scottish Police Authority Forensic Services Division (SPA-FSD) in early 2025. Subsequently, the Commission published its report which highlighted Scotland’s different model of forensic delivery in comparison with the police and privatised market driven model in England and Wales. The Scottish model of delivery is cited in the report as publicly governed, multi-disciplinary and scientifically rigorous in comparison with the position in England and Wales.
On 20th November 2024, the Director of SPA-FSD and the Chair of the SPA alongside scientific experts attended the Scottish Parliament to showcase the work of SPA-FSD to MSPs. This included demonstrating Scotland’s world leading services, how they are deployed to scenes of crime in Scotland and how the captured evidence provides vital intelligence to Police Scotland in the investigation of crime. Given that the Scottish Government has no role in operational policing, it is for the SPA to highlight good practice in the provision of forensic services for the investigation and prosecution of crime in Scotland. The SPA Board regularly receives reports on SPA-FSD’s performance and standards.