Late last week, the Scottish Parliament approved the nomination for Scotland’s new Biometrics Commissioner.
Brian Plastow, a former police Chief Superintendent and lead inspector for Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland, will become the first person to hold the post following an open recruitment competition.
The newly created role of Commissioner is to support and promote the adoption of lawful, effective and ethical practices in relation to biometric data in a policing and criminal justice context.
Plastow’s appointment will be for a fixed term of eight years, with a salary of £70,000 per annum. The Commissioner will be appointed by Her Majesty the Queen on the nomination of the Scottish Parliament.
The Scottish Biometrics Commissioner Act 2020 provides for the establishment of the office of the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner and to provide for its functions in relation to the acquisition, retention, use and destruction of biometric data for criminal justice and police purposes. As the first Commissioner, Plastow will establish the office.
Plastow has significant leadership experience in the policing and criminal justice sector. He was formerly a police Chief Superintendent retiring in 2013 after a 30-year career with Lothian and Borders Police, Fife Constabulary, and Police Scotland.
Between 2013 and 2016, Plastow was employed by the Scottish Government as Lead Inspector with Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMICS) in Scotland, providing inspection, scrutiny, and assurance reports to the Scottish Parliament on various topics including roads policing, armed response policing, missing person investigations and the use of the facial search functionality within the UK Police National Database.
Plastow has also worked collaboratively with other scrutiny bodies conducting UK inspections of reserved policy matters such as counter-terrorism preparedness.
In 2017/2018, he represented HMICS in assisting the work of the Independent Advisory Group (IAG) on Biometric Data in Scotland chaired by John Scott QC, solicitor advocate. In 2019/20 he provided research and assistance to the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) multi-agency working group on digital forensics, and to the SPA Forensic Services Committee in outlining future options for biometric data and databases in Scotland.
Plastow has significant knowledge of, and practical experience in, the use of biometric data and technologies for criminal justice and policing purposes. He has also conducted independent research into policing, equalities, and human rights and holds a Ph.D. in criminology from the University of Leicester.
Republished courtesy of the Scottish Parliament.