Overview
The complainant, Mr C, submitted a complaint about a report (the Report) issued by the Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland (PCCS) concerning matters he raised with them. He said that, although he pointed to a number of inaccuracies in the Report, they were not amended. He further said that the Report included favourable comments about police involvement and that when it was published, despite it being anonymised, he was easily identifiable.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that:
- (a) the PCCS did not amend inaccuracies in the Report which were brought to their attention by Mr C (not upheld);
- (b) the Report should not have included favourable comments about the police (not upheld); and
- (c) Mr C was easily identifiable from the Report (not upheld).
Redress and recommendations
The Ombudsman recommends that, notwithstanding that it is ultimately for the PCCS to determine their own internal procedures, the PCCS reconsider their decision not to issue draft reports, in order to allow any possible errors of fact to be amended prior to the publication of a final report.