Scotland’s Police force has been beset with difficulties since its 8 Police forces were merged into a single entity five years ago. Some of these difficulties have come to light because police officers have reported their concerns to politicians and the media. So what is the Police management plan to deal with this? Simples. Just make police officers register every single contact with politicians or journalists. If they don’t they could find themselves in big trouble.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie has called for the intervention of the Justice Secretary and Scottish Police Authority to ensure that the police hierarchy are not free to silence internal critics after it was revealed that new guidance has been issued within Police Scotland that will crack down on whistle-blowers.

From STV News:

Scotland’s justice secretary has been urged to ensure new Police Scotland guidelines do not have a “chilling effect” on internal critics within the force.

The new rules require officers to declare any associations they have with journalists and politicians, raising concerns they will be used to quash whistleblowing.

The guidance is compulsory for all police officers and special constables, with the prospect of misconduct proceedings for anyone who breaches it.

It is part of the force’s latest anti-corruption strategy and aims to “protect the information, assets and reputation of Police Scotland”.

The General Secretary of the Scottish Police Federation likened it to the sort of policy you would find in a banana republic.

Any policy that equates contact with elected parliamentarians and journalists with contact with criminals is deeply worrying.

It risks being seen as an attempt to silence dissent that would not be out of place in a banana republic.

Willie said:

It was because of principled police officers and staff members that we got to bottom of the deep rooted flaws in Scotland’s police service. These people should be hailed not silenced.

The M9 crash, the chaos in the control rooms, the back filling of civilian roles by police officers, the near misses, armed police on routine duties. All of these issues were exposed in part through the assistance of police staff and officers who cared about the future of the police service.

A declaration of media and political contacts is designed to snuff out such contacts rather than to aid transparency.

The Leveson inquiry investigated these matters and we must be careful to learn the lessons but a political and media register would have a chilling effect and would enable those in charge to escape the necessary scrutiny.

The Justice Secretary and Scottish Police Authority should intervene to ensure that the police hierarchy are not free to silence internal critics.

And what did the Scottish Government have to say? As so often when Police Scotland infringed civil liberties in some way, all they come out with is that it is “an operational matter for the Police.”

Sometimes you just have to intervene and do the liberal thing. A liberal Justice Secretary wouldn’t put up with this. The SNP just doesn’t get it.

When there’s a problem, you fix it. You don’t threaten anyone who brings it into the public domain with the sack.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social