Scottish Biometrics Commissioner

The Scottish Biometrics Commissioner Act 2020 established the office of Scottish Biometrics Commissioner and provides for its functions. The Commissioner is independent of Scottish Government and was appointed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on the nomination of the Scottish Parliament.

The Commissioner’s general function is to support and promote the adoption of lawful, effective and ethical practices in relation to the acquisition, retention, use and destruction of biometric data for criminal justice and police purposes by Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) and the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC). The Commissioner must lay an annual report on activities each year before the Scottish Parliament and may publish other reports and research, as necessary.

Key responsibilities include the Code of Practice, as described within Section 7 of the Act; a Complaints Procedure by which an individual, or someone acting on an individual’s behalf, may make a complaint to the Commissioner that a person who is required by Section 9(1) of the Act, to comply with the Code of Practice has not done or is not doing so in relation to the individual’s biometric data, as well as areas of reporting and compliance as explained within Section 20, Section 23(1) re Compliance Notices and Section 27.

Further information on the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner Act 2020, can be found here.