My Amendment 14 adds the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner—the PIRC—as a notifying body under section 14(5) of the bill. This will require the PIRC to notify the review oversight committee of any death of which it is aware and believes to be reviewable.

This is an important addition that responds to a direct request from the PIRC that it be included, and it also recognises the unique nature of some of the cases that the PIRC and staff deal with, which fall outside traditional notification routes.

Since the PIRC does not currently share details of those cases with Scottish ministers or the directing policing body during investigations, including the PIRC within the bill is necessary in order to ensure a clear and direct route for the deaths to be notified.

This addition is also supported by Police Scotland, which has stated that the addition will help to strengthen the review model.

The inclusion of the PIRC will trigger the need for changes elsewhere in the bill, so amendments 19 to 21, 29, 48 and 53 ensure consistency across the bill and acknowledge the PIRC’s new role as a notifying body.

These amendments require the PIRC to be a party to the protocol under section 19 and subject to the duty to co-operate under section 20. The PIRC office will also be added to the list in paragraph 3 of the schedule, so that current and recent former commissioners and employees will not be able to apply for relevant offices under the bill, thereby avoiding conflicts of interest and helping to ensure independence within the review process. Various other minor consequential adjustments are also made.

Finally, amendments 15 and 16 make changes to section 15(4) to provide that, if one notifying body revokes its notification of a death as being reviewable but another has not done so, the review process under section 16 still proceeds. That will ensure that we can account for the possibility of differing views among notifying bodies and disapply in those circumstances the current requirement that any revocation of a notification halts further consideration of the death.

I move amendment 14.

Amendment 14 agreed to.

Section 15—Review of notification

Amendments 15 and 16 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.

Section 16—Determination as to whether to hold a review

Amendment 17 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.

After section 16A

Amendment 18 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.

Section 19—Protocol in relation to interaction with criminal investigations etc

Amendments 19 to 21 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.

Section 20—Duty on public authorities to co-operate

Amendments 22 and 23 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.