Police and fire service merger review identifies ‘systemic problems’

Improvements are needed to address “systemic problems” created when Scotland’s police and fire services became national bodies, according to MSPs.

Holyrood’s Justice Committee has completed a review of the reorganisation of the services.

Poor money management and personnel issues were identified as issues.

The Scottish government said the changes had brought about a more consistent and improved service.

Prior to the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012, the police and fire services in Scotland had each consisted of eight regional organisations.

When the act came into effect in 2013, it was one of the biggest transformations of public services since devolution.

The separate organisations were merged to create two national bodies – Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

In April last year, the justice committee began an inquiry into the centralisation of the two services in order to examine how effective the change has been.

The committee concluded that although reform had led to greater consistency of service across Scotland, as well as allowing for more equal access to specialist capabilities and support, a number of issues, particularly within Police Scotland, should be further addressed.

The committee’s report on policing indicated that poor financial management, unclear lines of responsibility and a failure to focus on the views of officers and staff in the early stages of reform lie at the root of many of the problems faced by Police Scotland.

Among the issues highlighted were forecast savings not being realised, IT problems hampering police effectiveness and a string of well-publicised personnel problems resulting in senior management “instability and concerns over a lack of clear leadership” in the initial years of the reform process.

A need for an exemption for police and fire services from the payment of VAT was also highlighted in the committee’s considerations.

The creation of national organisations meant that for several years they were liable for VAT, unlike other services throughout the UK which qualified for rebate because they were still funded through local councils.

In November 2017, Chancellor Philip Hammond announced he would address the anomaly, and extend the exemption to the Scottish fire and police services.

The report set out a range of recommendations for improving Police Scotland, including; an overhaul of police complaints processes to create a more “equitable, clear and fair system”, a more proactive role by the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) in its oversight and scrutiny of new Police Scotland policies and to provide more robust financial projections.

‘Personality issues’
The committee also suggested that the option of including the Scottish Parliament in the appointment process of the SPA chair should be explored, as well as stating that SPA and Police Scotland should demonstrate that recent improvements in leadership and governance would mean that previous “shortcomings caused by personality issues” could not reoccur.

Justice committee convener Margaret Mitchell MSP said: “Our police and fire services do a vital job keeping people in Scotland safe. It is imperative that the structures and regulations underpinning these organisations work well.

Source: (BBC News)