COPFS death reporting guidance review
Crown Office and the Procurator Fiscal service (COPFS) should review its guidance on the reporting of deaths regularly and at least every two years.
- The Scottish Government wrote to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) requesting action on this recommendation. COPFS publishes guidance on the reporting of deaths to the Procurator Fiscal, including guidance for medical practitioners (COPFS, Reporting Deaths).
- However, the specific recommendation was that COPFS should review its death reporting guidance regularly and at least every two years. There is limited published evidence of a formal, regular two-yearly review cycle for COPFS death reporting guidance since the Vale of Leven inquiry.
- COPFS death reports decreased by 30% between 2010/11 (13,090) and 2014/15 (9,155), while Fatal Accident Inquiries more than doubled in 2014/15.
How was this evidence gathered?
Response
Accepted
Response
AcceptedSection 5.1 of the Scottish Government's response details actions taken to implement the report's recommendations, including R70. The Government wrote to the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service in December 2014, requesting an assessment of progress against the recommendations. This initiative is part of a broader commitment to ensure all 75 recommendations are fully implemented and monitored.
Published Evidence
Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.
COPFS confirmed it would review guidance on death reporting regularly. COPFS has revised its Guidance on Investigation of Deaths over the period since the inquiry.
View detailed findings
No publicly available evidence of a specific two-yearly review cycle being formally adopted.