Scotland’s Incomplete Counter Terrorism Plans Displays Lack of Urgency and Commitment to Public Safety

This past weekend a highly confidential document titled “Emerging and Residual Threat Local Profiles” was accidentally leaked onto the Scottish Police Authorities (SPA) website. Police concerns were displayed in the document when it was found that local authorities have not been fully briefed on how to prepare and respond to an act of terrorism, and a number of key agencies need ongoing training.

A police spokeswoman noted, “The paper contained protectively marked information, which was uploaded to the Scotland Police Authority’s in an error and was spotted and corrected after a media inquiry.” The report was never meant for public view and was replaced by a public version of the plan.

Police Scotland, was formed in 2013 through the merger of eight regional police forces, and provides the law enforcement services for Scotland. The Specialist Crime Division (SCD) of Police Scotland incorporates counter terrorism and intelligence support as part of its responsibilities.

The paper provides an update on Scotland’s compliance with the United Kingdom’s counter-terrorism strategy known as CONTEST.

CONTEST cover’s four sections known as the “four P’s” of tactical policing in response to terrorism. Pursue- investigate and disrupt terrorism; Prevent – to stop people from working with or becoming terrorist; Protect – to stop a terrorist attacks; and Prepare – to minimize impact of an attack and aid in recovery.

The Prevention phase has come under scrutiny and debate over time as fatally flawed and incapable of achieving its goals. In the wake of the 7/7 attacks, millions were spent by ministers to improve security. The Original PREVENT strategy, despite focusing on outreach to Muslim communities, was criticized across the political spectrum, with the left and Muslim groups, accusing it of spying or alienating Muslims, and criticism from the right that it favored Muslim groups over other religious organizations, and provided “thousands of pounds of tax payers’ money” for Islamist groups to “proselytize for Islam.”

The Emerging and Residual Threat Local Profile plan inquired for Police Scotland to provide to develop counter terrorism tools for healthcare, law enforcement, and teachers. The plan also contained a mock drill for law enforcement and partners called “Operation Archer.” This mock terrorist event included news bulletins and arrests, and was designed to “demystify” the CONTEST strategy.

There was concern about the threat profile by the Scottish Police Authority’s Watchdog panel, when information displayed showed that police have yet to identify vulnerable targets prone to a terrorist attack. Also, that counter terrorism security advisers (CTSA’s) are not mentioned in the report at all. Counterterrorism security advisors are trained by the National Counterterrorism Security Task Office, (NaCTSO) and identify assess local sites which may be vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

Police Scotland have been in involved in a number of controversies with the public over the past six months. Incidents include using heavily armed officers to report to minor incidents.The increased need for armed police, demonstrated by the killing of unarmed police during the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris, has been a continuous topic, in Europe.  Chief Philip Gormley, noted how the Paris attacks have called for tighter security measures to maintain public safety.

There was concern that Scotland was nowhere near prepared for a Paris-style terrorist attack. This assumption was verified when Colum Steele, General Secretary for the Scottish Police Foundation (SPF), was quoted, “Scotland is under prepared, under resources, and under equipped when it comes to terrorism.”

Scotland’s terrorism concerns occurred back in November 2013, when Aqsa Mahmood, fled Glasgow, and married a Jihadi fighter in Syria. Her online blog “Diary of a Muhajira”, under her new name Umm Layth, explained to young women of how to prepare for life in Syria and what to expect. She is very popular in underground social media circles and may have been highly influential in encouraging four school girls to join the Islamic State (IS).

Chief Gormley admitted, “We need to take a very careful look at counterterrorism planning.” The events of Pan Am Flight 103 are still imbedded into Scotland’s history of terrorism. The country is seeing a renaissance in their financial and information technology sectors, which would be prime targets for terrorists to strike. It will be law enforcement’s responsibility to continually train, maintain strong partnerships, work with the public, and be vigilant of a changing landscape.