This assurance review of the Scottish Police Authority’s Forensic Services Toxicology Section followed disclosure that drug driving cases had been marked as ‘no proceedings’ by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. This occurred primarily due to SPA Forensic Services Toxicology Section failing to analyse and report blood samples within appropriate timescales.
The review focussed on the end-to-end processes, from roadside to court, for drug driving. This report provides an overview of the issues leading to the drug driving cases that were unable to be prosecuted, with an assessment of the effectiveness surrounding the processes in place for obtaining, analysing and reporting drug driving blood samples to support criminal proceedings.
The report contains 25 recommendations and identifies areas for development to Improve the provision of service in relation to drug driving.
Number | Recommendation |
|---|---|
1 | Police Scotland, SPA Forensic Services and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service should work with Scottish Government to collate and produce data to facilitate an assessment of the scale and nature of drug driving in Scotland. This should include a review of combination drink and drug driving behaviour |
2 | SPA and Police Scotland should consider an auditable mechanism to assess impact of new legislation in terms of resource, budget, policy and public confidence |
3 | SPA Forensic Services, Police Scotland and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service must work together and identify solutions and timelines to ‘stand down’ outstanding interim and exceptional measures, still in place, to support drug driving justice provision |
4 | SPA and SPA Forensic Services should review the drug driving analytical and reporting process and seek ways to reduce costs |
5 | SPA and SPA Forensic Services should review current and future procurement of drug driving analysis outsourcing to ensure best value |
6 | SPA and SPA Forensics Services should consider the available evidence in other jurisdictions to assess the opportunities to reclaim forensic service costs and then work with Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and Scottish Government to establish if this is possible in Scottish criminal trials |
7 | Police Scotland and SPA Forensic Services should improve how drug driving samples are tracked and managed, including the consideration of technological methods such as barcoding, networking and automation of processes and instruments |
8 | SPA Forensic Services, Police Scotland and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service should consider opportunities for the Joint National Forensic Gateway to effectively manage all forensic submissions, including drug driving |
9 | Police Scotland and SPA Forensic Services should create a priority forensic analysis protocol that would establish high and standard risk categories for analysis and associated timescales for drug driving cases |
10 | SPA Forensic Services must immediately progress the core operating solution plans and explore opportunities to interface with Police Scotland and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service |
11 | SPA Forensic Services should work with Police Scotland and review the storage and movement of drug driving samples end to end, to ensure that all efficiencies, sample degradation risks, forensic integrity and health and safety matters have been considered and implemented |
12 | SPA, SPA Forensic Services, Police Scotland and the Health Boards of Scotland must collectively consider the service provision for drug driving within the scope of the Memorandum of Understanding between Police Scotland and all geographic Health Boards, regarding custody healthcare and forensic medical services in police custody |
13 | SPA Forensic Services should, as a matter of urgency, review current working practices including workload and work allocation for all staff involved in the delivery of drug driving forensic service provision |
14 | SPA Forensic Service managers must ensure they have effective management structures and performance management information in place to ensure proactive oversight and scrutiny in terms of work allocation, demand and capacity assessment, as well as performance |
15 | SPA Forensic Service managers must ensure they have effective management structures and performance management information in place to ensure proactive oversight and scrutiny in terms of work allocation, demand and capacity assessment, as well as performance |
16 | SPA Forensic Services and Police Scotland should assure that data retention, data processing and production management guidance is cognisant of the handling and management of blood samples and associated data obtained for the purposes of sections 4 and 5A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 |
17 | SPA should review the functionality and membership of the Forensic Services Committee to provide effective and robust governance, providing an effective platform for Police Scotland, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner to hold SPA Forensic Services to account in terms of the quality and delivery of service provision |
18 | SPA Forensic Services must urgently address drug driving analysis and reporting turnaround times, cognisant of six-month statutory timescales |
19 | SPA Forensic Services must prioritise the recruitment of toxicology staff – as outlined in the Forensic Services Operating Model – to ensure current drug driving demand levels can be met in the short term |
20 | SPA and Police Scotland should develop a drug driving Enforcement Model that incorporates incremental growth and investment for innovation and technology with an adjoining public communication plan |
21 | SPA Forensic Services should review its Estates Strategy in respect of toxicology provision and consider the development of a dedicated road traffic facility |
22 | SPA and SPA Forensic Services must, as a matter of urgency, articulate the delivery of forensic service provision (as laid out in section 31 of the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012) to manage expectations of agencies and to ensure understanding of what is required by those in SPA Forensic Services |
23 | Police Scotland should include drug driving prevention activity within its current road safety prevention activity |
24 | Scottish Government should consider refreshing its Road Safety Framework to 2030 to include drug driving, given the growing prevalence in Scotland |
25 | Police Scotland should work with Transport Scotland and other organisations to establish long- term co-ordinated engagement and education campaigns and programmes aimed at raising awareness of the drug driving law |