§ Mr. KidneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 27 January 1998,Official Report, column 185, on Ministry of Defence Police, if he will ensure that sufficient information about transfers of personnel is published in the Force Orders to satisfy requirements of openness and scrutiny without disclosing details that are private to the individual officers. [35917]
§ Dr. ReidThis is a matter for the Chief Constable of the Ministry of Defence Police Agency. I have asked the Chief Constable to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Walter Boreham to Mr. David Kidney, dated 30 March 1998:
I am replying to your Question to the Secretary of State for Defence about Ministry of Defence Police Force Orders, as this falls into my area of responsibility as Chief Constable/Chief Executive of the Ministry of Defence Police Agency.I am satisfied that the publication in my weekly Force Orders of the names of officers posted, the Stations between which they are being moved and the dates of transfer, both respects the privacy of the individuals in personal matters and is open and subject to scrutiny.
§ Mr. KeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the reforms to the police complaints and discipline procedures announced by the Secretary of State for the Home Office apply to the Ministry of Defence Police; and if he will make a statement. [36442]
410W
§ Dr. Reid[holding answer 26 March 1998]: The Ministry of Defence Police are a civilian police force, constituted under the Ministry of Defence Police Act 1987. Their officers have the same powers and privileges in the Defence environment as their Home Department colleagues in the community at large.
The Ministry of Defence Police complaints and discipline procedures mirror those of Home Department Police Forces. I will consider the reforms announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department on 23 March 1998, Official Report, columns 21–37, and will discuss with the Chief Constable of the Ministry of Defence Police the introduction of any necessary parallel changes to the Ministry of Defence Police regulations.
§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what requirement is placed on the MoD police in Scotland, who demand items during the course of investigations of the homes of personnel, to supply a receipt for those items which they have taken into custody. [35133]
§ Dr. Reid[holding answer 19 March 1998]: The Ministry of Defence Police is a civilian police force constituted under statute by the Ministry of Defence Police Act 1987. The Chief Constable is independent of Ministerial, Departmental and political influence in the exercise of his constabulary powers. In specific cases questions about procedural applications in the exercise of the constabulary responsibilities of the Ministry of Defence Police are a matter for the Chief Constable.
In England and Wales, police procedures in respect of property taken from others in the course of an investigation are controlled by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. Paragraph 6.8 of Code B of the Codes of Practice requires police, on request, to provide a list or description of the property within a reasonable time to the person who had control of it. Ministry of Defence Police use a 'best practice' policy and normally provide a list of property, so taken, at the time of seizure.
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 does not apply within the Scottish legal system. There are no provisions or requirements within the Scottish legal system to provide a receipt to the owners of property taken into police possession. When operating in Scotland, Ministry of Defence Police are required to use the documentary systems and procedures adopted by all Scottish Police Forces. It would not, therefore, be appropriate for the Ministry of Defence Police to use the supporting forms which are used by them in England and Wales.