Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary
Encyclopedia
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland (HMICS) in the United Kingdom
have statutory responsibility for the inspection
of police forces.
, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary is responsible to the Home Office
. The first inspectors were appointed under the County and Borough Police Act 1856
; current statutory duties are defined in the Police Act 1996
. The current Chief Inspector is former Surrey Police
Chief Constable, Sir Dennis O'Connor .
The Inspectorate reports on the activities of the territorial forces of England and Wales and other bodies involved in law enforcement, such as the British Transport Police
, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary
, HM Revenue and Customs
and the Serious Organised Crime Agency
.
Reporting has also been performed on a voluntary basis for the Special Investigation Branch
(SIB) of the Royal Military Police
and the Isle of Man Constabulary
.
Inspections of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
have been made in recent years by invitation on a non-statutory basis by HMIC. The Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 allows HMIC to perform inspection and assessment of services or projects by direction of the Secretary of State.
and is responsible for inspections of the eight Scottish territorial police forces, the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, the Scottish Criminal Record Office
, the Scottish Police College
and the Scottish Police Information Strategy.
Paddy Tomkins
, the former Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police
, was the last appointed Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland in 2007. On Paddy Tomkins retirement in April 2009 Bill Skelly
was appointed Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland. This move from an Chief Inspector to Inspector of Constabulary has not been without controversy, with some Scottish Chief Constables objecting to the change.
Until 1 April 2007 HMIC was also responsible for dealing with complaints against the police; since then non-criminal complaints have been dealt with by the Police Complaints Commissioner, following the passing of the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006. HMIC has no authority to deal with complaints against Chief Police Officers.
The Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003
provides a statutory duty of inspection of British Transport Police
operations in Scotland.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
have statutory responsibility for the inspection
Inspection
An inspection is, most generally, an organized examination or formal evaluation exercise. In engineering activities inspection involves the measurements, tests, and gauges applied to certain characteristics in regard to an object or activity...
of police forces.
England and Wales
In England and WalesEngland and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary is responsible to the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
. The first inspectors were appointed under the County and Borough Police Act 1856
County and Borough Police Act 1856
The County and Borough Police Act 1856 was an Act of Parliament passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act made it compulsory for a police force to be established in any county which had not previously formed a constabulary....
; current statutory duties are defined in the Police Act 1996
Police Act 1996
The Police Act 1996 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which defined the current police areas, constituted the current police authorities and set out the relationship between the Home Secretary and the territorial police forces. It replaced the Police and Magistrates Courts Act...
. The current Chief Inspector is former Surrey Police
Surrey Police
Surrey Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Surrey in the south of England.The force is led by Chief Constable Mark Rowley and has its headquarters at Mount Browne, Guildford, Surrey...
Chief Constable, Sir Dennis O'Connor .
The Inspectorate reports on the activities of the territorial forces of England and Wales and other bodies involved in law enforcement, such as the British Transport Police
British Transport Police
The British Transport Police is a special police force that polices those railways and light-rail systems in Great Britain for which it has entered into an agreement to provide such services...
, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary
Civil Nuclear Constabulary
The Civil Nuclear Constabulary is a special police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at civil nuclear installations, and for nuclear materials in transit, throughout the United Kingdom....
, HM Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes and the payment of some forms of state support....
and the Serious Organised Crime Agency
Serious Organised Crime Agency
The Serious Organised Crime Agency is a non-departmental public body of the Government of the United Kingdom under Home Office sponsorship...
.
Reporting has also been performed on a voluntary basis for the Special Investigation Branch
Special Investigation Branch
The Special Investigation Branch is the name given to the detective branches of all three British military police arms: the Royal Navy Police, Royal Military Police and Royal Air Force Police. It is most closely associated with the Royal Military Police, which has the largest SIB. SIB members...
(SIB) of the Royal Military Police
Royal Military Police
The Royal Military Police is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK, and whilst service personnel are deployed overseas on operations and exercises.Members of the RMP are generally known as...
and the Isle of Man Constabulary
Isle of Man Constabulary
The Isle of Man Constabulary is the organisation responsible for policing the Isle of Man, an island of 80,000 inhabitants situated equidistant from Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and England.-Structures and Deployment:...
.
Inspections of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
Police Service of Northern Ireland
The Police Service of Northern Ireland is the police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary which, in turn, was the successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary in Northern Ireland....
have been made in recent years by invitation on a non-statutory basis by HMIC. The Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 allows HMIC to perform inspection and assessment of services or projects by direction of the Secretary of State.
Scotland
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland (HMICS) is independent of the Scottish Government. HMICS was established by the Police (Scotland) Act 1857Police (Scotland) Act 1857
The Police Act 1857 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The legislation made the establishment of a police force mandatory in the counties of Scotland, and also allowed existing burgh police forces to be consolidated with a county force.-Establishment of County Police Forces:The...
and is responsible for inspections of the eight Scottish territorial police forces, the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, the Scottish Criminal Record Office
Scottish Criminal Record Office
Criminal Justice Information Services is a department of the Scottish Police Services Authority. Previously called the Scottish Criminal Record Office , it established in 1960 with a mission statement “To manage information for the Scottish Police Service, wider Criminal Justice Community and the...
, the Scottish Police College
Scottish Police College
The Scottish Police College, based at Tulliallan Castle, in Kincardine-on-Forth, provides basic training to all new recruits to the Scottish Police Forces....
and the Scottish Police Information Strategy.
Paddy Tomkins
Paddy Tomkins
Paddy Tomkins QPM was appointed HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland by Royal Warrant in March 2007. He was formerly the Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police, which he joined in 2002 and was succeeded by David Strang. He initially joined Sussex Police in 1979 and in 1993...
, the former Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police
Lothian and Borders Police
Lothian and Borders Police is the territorial police force for the Scottish council areas of the City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, Scottish Borders and West Lothian...
, was the last appointed Chief Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland in 2007. On Paddy Tomkins retirement in April 2009 Bill Skelly
Bill Skelly
Bill Skelly became HM Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland by Royal Warrant in December 2008, on the retirement of Paddy Tomkins HMCIC. He is seconded from Lothian and Borders Police where he was appointed temporary Deputy Chief Constable in August 2008, having previously been the Assistant Chief...
was appointed Inspector of Constabulary for Scotland. This move from an Chief Inspector to Inspector of Constabulary has not been without controversy, with some Scottish Chief Constables objecting to the change.
Until 1 April 2007 HMIC was also responsible for dealing with complaints against the police; since then non-criminal complaints have been dealt with by the Police Complaints Commissioner, following the passing of the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006. HMIC has no authority to deal with complaints against Chief Police Officers.
The Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003
Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003
The Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 is an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament-Purposes of the Act:The purposes of the Act include:-*the creation of the Rail Accident Investigation Branch...
provides a statutory duty of inspection of British Transport Police
British Transport Police
The British Transport Police is a special police force that polices those railways and light-rail systems in Great Britain for which it has entered into an agreement to provide such services...
operations in Scotland.