VICTIMS of undercover police spying are demanding an independent inquiry into the controversial practices.
The Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance met with the Scottish Justice Secretary Michael Matheson yesterday to argue the case for a Scotland-wide investigation.
However the group, who are all victims of spying by known officers, say they have been let down by the meeting and argue the investigation taking place in Scotland currently is “not good enough”.
During a press conference in Govan, Merrick Cork, who was spied on by outed undercover agent Mark Kennedy while in Scotland, said: “The Scottish government’s response is not good enough.
“They commissioned Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) to do a review.
“They did this without talking to any victims of these abuses.
“HMICS is the most inappropriate body to be doing this as it’s a group of senior police officers, some of whom were personally involved in authorising these officers.It is not independent and it cannot be trusted."
Merrick, 48, joined fellow victims Helen Steel, Donal O’Driscoll and Tilly Gifford in calling for the Scottish Government to take action.
Tilly, an activist from Glasgow says she was a victim of intimidation after occupying a runway at Aberdeen airport in 2009 with members of protest group Plane Stupid.
She claims afterwards she was approached by officers who tried to recruit her as a spy.
The 32-year-old said she feels let down that her case will not form part of the independent Pitchford Inquiry - a review taking place in England looking at undercover policing in England and Wales.
She said:” Because this happened in Scotland, I will not be included in the Pitchford Inquiry.
“Although there is evidence, and it is documented, that I was targeted, I will be completely left out of the enquiry.
“I don’t know who these people were. They were using Strathclyde Police resources but their names did not appear on any Strathclyde Police databases.”
Cabinet Secretary for Justice Michael Matheson said: “I was very glad of the opportunity to meet with the campaigners this morning to discuss undercover policing.
“My position continues to be that a single inquiry across the UK would be the best option for a comprehensive and coherent investigation into these matters. As the UK Government has refused our request for this, we have directed HMICS to carry out an independent review of undercover policing in Scotland.
“The review will be essential in gathering facts about existing and historical undercover policing activities, over the period the Scottish Parliament has had responsibility in this area, and will inform any future decisions we make.
“People can have full confidence that the HMICS review of undercover policing will be thorough and independent.”
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel