/qresearch/ -  Q Research

>>24498043

>>24498044

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/snps-secret-scotland-blamed-police-37002284

'SNP's secret Scotland' blamed for Police Scotland's huge spend on gagging orders

Exclusive: The Scottish Government's secretive culture was blamed for £2.8m being spent on non-disclosure agreements by Police Scotland.

David Walker

12 Apr 2026

The SNP's "secret Scotland" has been blamed for Police Scotland spending a huge £2.8m on gagging orders in just five years - with this being paid out to employees so they can't speak about their employment. The cash-strapped force has complained about not getting enough funding from the Scottish Government, meaning police numbers may have to be slashed again.

But according to a freedom of information request by the Scottish Daily Express, it has managed to find a lot of money for non-disclosure agreements, basically using taxpayer cash to stop whistleblowing. The sums of cash were used to settle claims including discrimination, unfair dismissal, and harassment.

The SNP Executive oversees the police force and have been caught up repeatedly in its own secrecy scandals, fighting the Scottish Information Commissioner in court repeatedly to block the release of documents. Most recently, it was to block files relating to whether Nicola Sturgeon breached the ministerial code.

Gagging orders were signed with both officers and civilian staff and relate to employment tribunals, with the recipient usually unable to speak out thanks to the compensation payout. The most high-profile case was in 2022 when the force paid out £940,000 to former firearms office Rhona Malone after a tribunal found she had also been discriminated against after complaining about a sexist email.

According to the request, a total of four NDAs were signed in 2021, costing £63,801, then 19 were settled in 2022 at a cost of £417,750. The highest cost came in 2023 when 14 gagging orders were noted, with a bill of £2.1m. In 2024, there were five at £182,500 and there were two last year, reaching £58,000.

Critics slated the huge amount spent on these deals, especially with the financial struggles of the force. Scottish Conservative candidate for Aberdeenshire East Douglas Lumsden told the Scottish Daily Express: “The eye-watering sum spent on gagging orders is yet another example of the SNP’s secret Scotland.

“Millions of pounds of taxpayers’ cash has been spent to stop police officers speaking out – this isn’t just a misuse of public cash, it’s a nefarious example of the SNP’s lack of transparency. The threat of the SNP getting a majority is very real, and if they do, they’ll continue to resist accountability – that’s why you need to vote Scottish Conservative on your peach ballot paper.”

Just last month, Police Scotland cut the number of special sick pay arrangements offered to officers due to financial worries. Under the current rules, Chief Constable Jo Farrell has the discretion to allow officers to continue to receive full or half pay to which they would not be entitled under the force’s absence regulations.

But in a letter to one officer, the service’s head of human resources said their sick pay would not be extended after the arrangement was tightened. The force sought a £105 million uplift, but received only £90 million.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Compensation payments are dealt with on a case-by-case basis with a view to securing best value for the public purse. The organisation has introduced learning processes in order to support the understanding of managers of how they can support their people and ensure that all opportunities are taken to resolve matters in advance of escalation.”

>>24501173

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/16150097/glasgow-restaurateurs-jailed-680-k-vat-fraud/

TAX BILL SCAM Owners of Glasgow restaurants Halloumi & Pickled Ginger jailed over massive £680k VAT fraud

Connor Gordon

13 Apr 2026

A TYCOON indy backer who rubbed shoulders with former First Ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf has been nailed alongside two restaurant bosses over a huge VAT scam.

Dodgy accountant Khalid Javid, 67, recklessly made false statements on HMRC returns that cost the taxman more than £136,000.

Leading restaurateurs Antonio Carbajosa, 41, and Kevin Campbell, 44, were also busted in the probe.

The pair ran a group of venues in Glasgow including Cranside Kitchen, Pickled Ginger and Halloumi.

Carbajosa and Campbell previously pleaded guilty to VAT fraud totalling £682,882 between November 2011 and October 2016.

Khalid – who repeatedly posed for pics with Ms Sturgeon including at Bute House – meantime admitted recklessly making a statement which was false in that he submitted VAT returns for two companies.

He had been due to stand trial at the High Court in Glasgow today but pleaded guilty.

Carbajosa and Campbell were sentenced to three years each for their crimes while sentence was deferred on Khalid.

The court heard that Carbajosa and Campbell were associates who ran various restaurants and takeaways across Glasgow.

It was stated that the pair “acted together in a co-ordinated way” in the lucrative scam.

>>24511215

……………………………………………………………………………….continued…………………………………………………………………………….

The men “suppressed” the true value of sales for their limited companies that were registered.

Javid’s accountancy firm KA Javid & Co were instructed by Carbajosa and Campbell.

The accountant created the dodgy duo’s VAT returns and dealt with other matters such as PAYE, corporation tax as well as annual returns to Companies House.

Carbajosa and Campbell meantime were responsible for creating and maintaining business records to calculate VAT.

Prosecutor Wojciech Jajdelski said: “Carbajosa and Campbell did not comply with the VAT requirements in order to profit, in the longer term, from their restaurant businesses by not accounting for all of the VAT due to HMRC.

“Carbajosa and Campbell were also able to take more money out of the companies as their personal income than they otherwise would have been able to do.”

The hearing was told that VAT was to be added to goods and services supplied which would be accounted to HMRC.

Despite some of the businesses selling sushi takeaway food which required no VAT, most of the supplies were subject to 20 percent tax.

The offending came to light of HMRC investigators due to initial discrepancies in returns from two of the businesses.

This resulted in Operation Keyholder and a forensic accounting report was prepared between August 2012 and October 2016.

Furthermore, three of the companies were not registered for VAT and did not pay tax on sales generated by them.

Mr Jajdelski said: “This was done personally or through Khalid Javid and/or his staff on VAT returns submitted to HMRC.

“Carbajosa and Campbell knew that the sales information provided in the VAT returns were false.”

The advocate depute stated that HMRC made a total loss of £136,576 from Javid’s actions.

Mr Jajdelski said: “In relation to two of the companies, Mr Javid recklessly made statements in the relevant VAT returns which were false.”

This included failing to give the correct sales and output VAT as well as seek clarification from the two men about figures.

It was also said a twenty percent reduction to all sales figures without a “proper factual basis” was carried out.

Javid, of Stepps, Lanarkshire, has twice posted pics on social media of him at Edinburgh’s Bute House with ex-Nats chief Ms Sturgeon.

In another he’s seen speaking at a Scots Asians for Independence event before the 2014 referendum, watched by then-First Minister Alex Salmond and Ms Sturgeon.

And a snap posted in 2019, but thought to be from years earlier, shows him alongside new SNP leader Mr Yousaf.

Javid was linked to a Holyrood probe in 2010 after it emerged that he paid £2,000 at a Glasgow auction event for lunch with then deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon.

Javid had bid £260 the previous year for a tour of the Scottish Parliament.

Following the SNP saying that none of these events had taken place and no donations had been received, the complaints against Miss Sturgeon and then First Minister Alex Salmond were dismissed.

>>24498031

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/16167048/cops-nab-paedo-watching-child-abuse-material-on-train/

BEHIND BARS Moment cops pounce on paedo after passenger saw him watching child sex abuse material on the TRAIN

Bruno Brown

17 Apr 2026

THIS is the moment a creep is arrested on a train after a disturbed passenger saw him looking at indecent images as they travelled.

Sicko David Johnson was caught after a horrified fellow traveller spotted him watching child abuse videos on his phone during a journey to London.

Police body worn footage shows officers storming onto the train as it arrives at Euston Station and cuff the creep.

Johnson appeared puzzled and said “I haven’t” as an officer states the reason for his arrest.

The shocked witness who reported Johnson was sitting behind him when he saw the fiend opening a video showing a young child being abused.

Johnson then switched chats where someone asked: “what kinds of videos do you like? I have all kinds”.

Johnson chillingly replied: “just kids videos”.

Stunned by what he had heard, the witness texted his partner about what he was seeing.

When he looked again, Johnson was watching another clip involving an even younger child.

The shaken passenger moved carriage before alerting British Transport Police using its 61016 text service.

Officers raced to meet the train at London Euston railway station where Johnson was arrested.

The court later heard how, at around midday on September 23 last year, Johnson had been travelling from Stafford to London when he was spotted.

A search revealed his phone wallpaper was itself an indecent image of a child.

In custody, he even asked if he could have his property back because he “needed to delete some stuff”.

He gave no comment in interview.

Further searches uncovered nearly 200 indecent images on his phone, including 105 in the most serious category.

Detectives also found messages showing he believed he was speaking to a 13-year-old girl and had arranged to meet her for sex.

Another chat suggested he was trying to see the same child, but was told she was unwell.

Officers later established the girl did not exist.

Johnson, of Francis Chichester Way, Wandsworth, admitted six counts of making indecent images of children, two counts of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child and arranging or facilitating a child sex offence.

He was jailed for two years and three months at Inner London Crown Court on April 1.

Johnson was also handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order and must sign the sex offenders register for a decade.

Detective Constable Victoria Lowth said: “The quick thinking and courage of the man who saw Johnson’s phone meant that we were able to quickly arrest him and uncover the scale of his offending.

“I’d like to offer our sincerest thanks to that man, whose actions have directly led to Johnson’s imprisonment.

“Behind every image and video Johnson owned is a vulnerable child that has been exploited and abused.

“He is clearly a danger to children and has rightly been handed substantial jail sentence, and stringent conditions have been put in place to prevent him from offending further.

“We will always do everything we can to make the railway a hostile place for criminals, and especially those whose offending targets children.”

>>24498048

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/scottish-news/police-watchdog-investigating-directive-ignore-37054505.amp

Police watchdog investigating directive to ignore complaints about the Covid vaccine

Campaigner Lesley Roberts has set her sights on a new target, with Police Scotland (and Nicola Sturgeon) taking a lead role in the UK-wide police response to the Covid pandemic and subsequent complaints and protests

Ben Borland

22 Apr 2026

The Scottish Police Authority is investigating a complaint about a Covid-era directive telling officers to "ignore" criminal complaints relating to vaccine jabs.

The order was issued as part Operation Talla, which was set up by Police Scotland on January 29, 2020, after a meeting of the Scottish Government's 'Resilience Room' chaired by then-First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

It was put in place to "activate organisational plans for a pandemic scenario" and was later expanded to police forces across the whole of the United Kingdom by the National Police Chiefs' Council.

Police Scotland adopted the 'Four Es' approach (Engage, Explain, Encourage, Enforce) to the lockdown laws. As Deputy Chief Constable Alan Speirs later told the UK Covid Inquiry: "Enforcement, whether through the issuance of a Fixed Penalty Notice or otherwise, was used only as the last resort after the first three 'Es' had been undertaken."

Between March 2020 and May 2021, Police Scotland recorded 145,544 "Covid-19 related encounters" with members of the public with 20,410 fines issued and "less than 1%" resulting in arrest.

In January 2022, DCC Speirs – who was then an Assistant Chief Constable – gave a statement about "the intimidation of staff and volunteers" at vaccine stations across the UK, after a number of incidents where "members of the public [had] sought to intimidate and serve papers" on them. He added: "We are also aware of individuals attending at police stations or calling police to… report what they believe to be criminal offences relating to the vaccine."

He also referred to Operation Norden, which had been set up the previous year to monitor anti-vaccine protests and other incidents relating to the growing opposition to the strict Covid-19 restrictions.

ACC Speirs said: "Should any officer or member of staff be approached or contacted by people requesting assistance in line with any of the above, then these requests should be rejected.

"A SID entry should be submitted and marked for the attention of Operation Norden, and Operation Talla should be informed via a CVI entry. While we continue to uphold individuals' rights to freedom of expression and to protest, this must be balanced with the rights of others, keeping the public safe, preventing crime and disorder, and seeking to minimise disruption.

"None of the type of behaviour outlined above should be considered as protest activity and could in fact constitute criminal activity. Any efforts to intimidate, harass, or commit assault against emergency service workers, staff and volunteers will not be tolerated."

This statement – which has become known as the 'Speirs Directive' – became a focus of concern among anti-vaccine campaigners. And now one of Scotland's most reputable healthcare activists has picked up the torch.

>>24498048

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/scottish-news/police-watchdog-investigating-directive-ignore-37054505.amp

Police watchdog investigating directive to ignore complaints about the Covid vaccine

Campaigner Lesley Roberts has set her sights on a new target, with Police Scotland (and Nicola Sturgeon) taking a lead role in the UK-wide police response to the Covid pandemic and subsequent complaints and protests

Ben Borland

22 Apr 2026

The Scottish Police Authority is investigating a complaint about a Covid-era directive telling officers to "ignore" criminal complaints relating to vaccine jabs.

The order was issued as part Operation Talla, which was set up by Police Scotland on January 29, 2020, after a meeting of the Scottish Government's 'Resilience Room' chaired by then-First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

It was put in place to "activate organisational plans for a pandemic scenario" and was later expanded to police forces across the whole of the United Kingdom by the National Police Chiefs' Council.

Police Scotland adopted the 'Four Es' approach (Engage, Explain, Encourage, Enforce) to the lockdown laws. As Deputy Chief Constable Alan Speirs later told the UK Covid Inquiry: "Enforcement, whether through the issuance of a Fixed Penalty Notice or otherwise, was used only as the last resort after the first three 'Es' had been undertaken."

Between March 2020 and May 2021, Police Scotland recorded 145,544 "Covid-19 related encounters" with members of the public with 20,410 fines issued and "less than 1%" resulting in arrest.

In January 2022, DCC Speirs – who was then an Assistant Chief Constable – gave a statement about "the intimidation of staff and volunteers" at vaccine stations across the UK, after a number of incidents where "members of the public [had] sought to intimidate and serve papers" on them. He added: "We are also aware of individuals attending at police stations or calling police to… report what they believe to be criminal offences relating to the vaccine."

He also referred to Operation Norden, which had been set up the previous year to monitor anti-vaccine protests and other incidents relating to the growing opposition to the strict Covid-19 restrictions.

ACC Speirs said: "Should any officer or member of staff be approached or contacted by people requesting assistance in line with any of the above, then these requests should be rejected.

"A SID entry should be submitted and marked for the attention of Operation Norden, and Operation Talla should be informed via a CVI entry. While we continue to uphold individuals' rights to freedom of expression and to protest, this must be balanced with the rights of others, keeping the public safe, preventing crime and disorder, and seeking to minimise disruption.

"None of the type of behaviour outlined above should be considered as protest activity and could in fact constitute criminal activity. Any efforts to intimidate, harass, or commit assault against emergency service workers, staff and volunteers will not be tolerated."

This statement – which has become known as the 'Speirs Directive' – became a focus of concern among anti-vaccine campaigners. And now one of Scotland's most reputable healthcare activists has picked up the torch.

>>24498048

……………………………………………………………………………….continued…………………………………………………………………………………

Lesley Roberts, a whistleblowing former NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde nurse from Greenock, says the directive "ensured that no police officer was able to listen to concerns or offer a reference number to any member of the public who had reservations or complaints".

In her complaint to Police Scotland, she adds: "Appalling did not even cover it. The general public rely on the police to protect them and do what is right when a crime has been reported. Instead this directive simply ignored complaints being raised in relation to Covid vaccinations."

Ms Roberts told the Scottish Express that she didn't take the Covid vaccine when the rollout began in late 2020 as she was already alarmed by the official failures in relation to the pandemic, and she did not believe it had been subject to sufficient testing. As time went on, she was also appalled at the way public sector workers were "forced to take this vaccine, even if they did not want to, in order to remain in employment".

Then, in March 2023, Ms Roberts and two fellow campaigners – Roger Livermore and Rab Wilson, of the Action for a Safe and Accountable People's NHS group – lodged a complaint of corporate manslaughter against the Scottish Government. This was in relation to unsafe masks, care home transfers and other decisions, rather than anything related to the vaccine.

They say they were "ignored" and "had to sit there for a substantial length of time" until their complaint was eventually accepted at Cowcaddens police station in Glasgow, despite Ms Roberts brandishing letters from the Chief Constable and the Lord Advocate advising her to take her concerns to the police.

She now believes this "dismissive" attitude was a result of the Speirs Directive, and her complaint to Police Scotland has now been shared with the Scottish Police Authority (SPA).

Correspondence from the SPA states: "For complaints about officers above the rank of Chief Superintendent (Assistant Chief Constable, Deputy Chief Constable, and Chief Constable), the appropriate authority is the SPA.

"Given this your email, in a redacted format, was shared with the Authority by Police Scotland, as you raise concerns about an officer then at the rank of Assistant Chief Constable.

"Given the content of your email, we believe that this is a relevant complaint in terms of the legislation. We would therefore like to arrange a meeting with you to obtain a signed Heads of Complaint and witness account."

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/when_rules_are_not_applied_independently.pdf

17th March 2026

You Cannot Win When the Rules Are Not Applied Independently

A Constitutional Analysis of Crime Recognition and Institutional Control

1. Introduction

The criminal justice system rests upon a simple but non-negotiable foundation:

The rules must be applied independently. Not selectively. Not conditionally. Not by reference to institutional interest.

Just, simply, applied.

This principle is not aspirational. It is constitutional because the criminal law does not begin in the courtroom. It begins at the point where alleged harm is recognised as capable of constituting a crime.

If that step is withheld, the system does not engage.

No investigation. No evidence. No court. It’s that stark.

The question addressed in this paper is therefore fundamental:

What follows when the gateway to the criminal law is itself subject to influence?

2. Crime Recording: The Constitutional Gate

Crime recording is often described as administrative. It is not. It is the constitutional gateway through which the entire criminal justice system is activated.

Once an allegation is recorded as a crime:

• investigative duties arise

• evidence must be gathered and preserved

• disclosure obligations follow

• prosecutorial consideration becomes possible

• judicial oversight is ultimately engaged

Without that act of recognition, none of these safeguards exist.

The law is not defeated. Rather, it is never permitted to operate.

3. Structural Conflict and Institutional Interest

In any system governed by the rule of law, the recognition of crime must be insulated from competing interests.

Risk arises where that insulation is weakened.

Particularly where:

• operational practice is shaped through centralised coordination

• national policy environments influence interpretation

• institutions responsible for recording allegations are themselves connected, directly or indirectly, to the subject matter of those allegations

In such circumstances, a structural conflict emerges, not necessarily of intent, but of position.

The same system which determines whether allegations enter the criminal process may also have an interest in how those allegations are characterised.

That is not a procedural issue. It is a constitutional vulnerability.

4. Recharacterisation as a Control Mechanism

The most effective means of controlling access to the criminal law is not overt refusal - It is redefinition.

Allegations capable of engaging criminal law may insteadbe:

• reclassified as protest activity

• treated as expressions of opinion or dissent

• absorbed into intelligence systems rather than crime records

• dismissed as matters outside criminal jurisdiction

The effect is decisive.

If an allegation is not recognised as a crime:

>>24542198

……………………………………………………………………………..continued………………………………………………………………………………..

• no investigative duty arises

• no evidential process is triggered

• no independent scrutiny follows

The matter is removed from the justice system at the point of inception. Quietly, administratively and completely.

5. The Constitutional Breach

This raises a question which goes to the core of constitutional governance.

The rule of law requires that:

• access to justice is real, not conditional

• legal thresholds are applied consistently

• the recognition of crime is determined by law, not convenience

Where the classification of alleged harm is capable of being shaped by institutional interest, those principles are compromised.

The critical shift is this:

The question ceases to be “Does this allegation disclose a crime?”

It becomes “Will this allegation be permitted to be treated as one?”

That is not a lawful transformation. It is actually a structural failure.

6. Oversight: The Missing Safeguard

Where such a risk exists, independent oversight should never be optional. It is absolutely essential and it has to be meaningful and properly accountable oversight itself.

The following questions arise with urgency:

• Who supervises systemic decisions relating to crime

recording?

• What scrutiny exists where national coordination

influences operational classification?

• How are decisions not to record allegations as crimes reviewed, audited or challenged?

If these questions cannot be answered clearly, then independence cannot be demonstrated – it is a sham. It does not exist.

Where independence cannot be demonstrated, public confidence cannot possibly be sustained.

7. Conclusion

The integrity of the criminal justice system does not fail in the courtroom. It fails at the threshold.

If the rules governing the recognition of crime are not applied independently, the system cannot function as a system of law. Law ceases to exist because the decisive moment has already passed.

The allegation has not been tested. It has been filtered.

The law has not been applied. It has been withheld. The position is lawless.

In those circumstances, the issue is no longer one of

operational practice. It becomes a significant constitutional problem.

Final Note

This paper does not depend upon any single category of allegation or factual scenario. Its conclusion is narrower, and more serious:

Where the gateway to the criminal law is subject to influence, the rule of law itself is placed at risk.

Ian Clayton

17 March 2026

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/naming_the_harm.pdf

Naming the Harm

Why Some Deaths Arising from Investigative Suppression Require New Legal Language

A supplementary public paper

1. Why language now matters

In the preceding paper, “When the State Switches Off Investigation” we examined how centrally coordinated suppression of crime recording and investigation can lead to foreseeable loss of life.

That analysis raises a further, unavoidable question:

If existing legal language cannot accurately describe the harm that has occurred, how can accountability ever be meaningfully pursued?

Law depends on naming.

Where harm cannot be named, it is rarely remedied.

2. The limits of existing terminology

Current legal and public discourse tends to frame deaths linked to systemic failure as:

• “tragic outcomes,”

• “regulatory failure,”

• “oversight breakdown,” or

• “institutional error.”

These terms may be appropriate where:

• failures are accidental,

• risks are not known,

• or systems are overwhelmed despite good-faith effort.

They are not adequate where evidence shows:

• deliberate suppression of investigation,

• centrally enforced non-recording of allegations,

• knowledge that harm would foreseeably continue,

• and persistence of that suppression after risks became clear.

At that point, the language of failure no longer describes reality.

3. The conceptual problem we now face

Deaths arising in these circumstances do not sit comfortably within traditional categories because:

• there may be no single lethal act,

• no isolated decision-maker,

• no immediate temporal link,

• and no investigation capable of testing causation.

Yet the deaths are not random, not unforeseeable and not detached from state action. They arise from institutional design choices.

This creates a conceptual gap:

• too grave to be dismissed as maladministration,

• too systemic to be reduced to individual negligence.

4. Introducing a necessary working term

To describe this category of harm, a working term is required.

The term proposed, cautiously, provisionally, and for analytical purposes, is:

“Novel homicide”

This term is not introduced lightly, nor as a criminal charge.

Pages 1-4 of 11

>>24498048

………………………………………………………………………………….continued2………………………………………………………………………………..

It is introduced to describe a form of lethal harm produced by mechanisms not previously encountered at scale.

5. What is meant by “novel”

“Novel” does not mean unprecedented death. It means a new mechanism of causation.

Specifically:

death arising not from a direct act, but from the engineered suppression of processes which exist to prevent death, where that suppression is deliberate, coordinated, and sustained.

The novelty lies in how the harm is produced - through policy-driven institutional silence.

6. What is meant by “homicide” (in this instance)

The term “homicide” is used here in its analytical, not accusatory sense.

It reflects the reality that:

life has been lost, the loss was foreseeable and the loss iscausally connected to state action or state-mandated inaction.

This usage does not assert:

• criminal intent,

• individual guilt,

• or settled legal liability.

It asserts something narrower, but profound:

That death has resulted from a system knowingly disabling its own life-protective functions.

7. Why existing law struggles with this category

Traditional homicide and manslaughter frameworks assume:

• identifiable acts,

• proximate causation,

• and intact investigative pathways.

Here, the investigative pathway itself has been removed.

This creates a paradox:

the more effective the suppression, the harder it becomes to attribute responsibility, even as harm increases.

“Novel homicide” names that paradox and prevents it from being hidden behind administrative language.

8. Relationship to human rights law

Human rights frameworks, particularly the right to life, already recognise:

• duties to protect life, and

• duties to investigate death.

What this concept adds is clarity around intentional systemic obstruction of those duties.

Where investigation is deliberately suppressed: the procedural breach becomes substantive and the harm extends beyond paperwork into mortality.

9. Why naming this matters now

Without language:

• deaths are compartmentalised,

• responsibility is diffused,

pages 5-8 of 11

>>24542648

>>24542664

………………………………………………………………………….continued3………………………………………………………………………….

• and systems remain unchanged.

With language:

• patterns become visible,

• accountability can be discussed honestly,

• and future suppression becomes harder to justify.

Naming is not escalation, but rather, it is precision.

10. What this paper does and does not do

This paper does not:

• accuse individuals,

• declare criminal findings,

• bypass due process.

It does:

• identify a new category of state-induced harm,

• explain why existing terms are inadequate,

• and invite serious legal, ethical and institutional examination.

11. The invitation

The term “novel homicide” is offered as a working concept, not a verdict.

It invites:

• legal scholars to test it,

• coroners and investigators to reflect on causation,

• policymakers to confront structural risk,

• and the public to ask better questions.

The alternative is silence and silence has already proven lethal.

Closing reflection

When a state disables the mechanisms which exist to prevent death, and people die as a result, the harm must be named or it will otherwise almost certainly be repeated.

Ian Clayton

8 December 2025

pages 9-11

>>24498048

https://x.com/EthicalApproach/status/2033836764146651628

ETHICAL APPROACH UK

@EthicalApproach

It is only fair that we express our thanks to the FOI teams at both @PoliceScotland and @PoliceChiefs for providing the disclosure necessary in order to drive forward our private investigation into Operation Talla policing.

We are genuinely and sincerely grateful to them 🙏

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/rejection_and_non_recording_in_op_talla.pdf

The Speirs Rejection Directive and the “To Not Record” Decision

A Forensic Legal Analysis of Crime Recording Suppression within Operation Talla

1. Introduction

This paper examines two interrelated elements emerging from documentary disclosures concerning Operation Talla:

1. The directive attributed to Assistant Chief Constable Alan Speirs instructing that certain public requests for assistance be rejected;

2. Subsequent evidential indications that guidance “to not record” such matters was considered operationally successful.

Individually, each raises concern. Taken together, they require structured legal scrutiny.

The issue is not operational discretion. It is whether a coordinated approach existed which influenced whether allegations capable of constituting criminal offences were permitted to enter the criminal justice system at all.

Pages 1-5 of 13

>>24543146

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/rejection_and_non_recording_in_op_talla.pdf

The Speirs Rejection Directive and the “To Not Record” Decision

A Forensic Legal Analysis of Crime Recording Suppression within Operation Talla

1. Introduction

This paper examines two interrelated elements emerging from documentary disclosures concerning Operation Talla:

1. The directive attributed to Assistant Chief Constable Alan Speirs instructing that certain public requests for assistance be rejected;

2. Subsequent evidential indications that guidance “to not record” such matters was considered operationally successful.

Individually, each raises concern. Taken together, they require structured legal scrutiny.

The issue is not operational discretion. It is whether a coordinated approach existed which influenced whether allegations capable of constituting criminal offences were permitted to enter the criminal justice system at all.

Pages 6-10 of 13

>>24543146

>>24543153

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/rejection_and_non_recording_in_op_talla.pdf

The Speirs Rejection Directive and the “To Not Record” Decision

A Forensic Legal Analysis of Crime Recording Suppression within Operation Talla

1. Introduction

This paper examines two interrelated elements emerging from documentary disclosures concerning Operation Talla:

1. The directive attributed to Assistant Chief Constable Alan Speirs instructing that certain public requests for assistance be rejected;

2. Subsequent evidential indications that guidance “to not record” such matters was considered operationally successful.

Individually, each raises concern. Taken together, they require structured legal scrutiny.

The issue is not operational discretion. It is whether a coordinated approach existed which influenced whether allegations capable of constituting criminal offences were permitted to enter the criminal justice system at all.

Pages 11-13 of 13

>>24498048

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 1-5 of 29

>>24498048

>>24545148

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 6-10 of 29

>>24498048

>>24545148

>>24545155

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 11-15 of 29

>>24498048

>>24545148

>>24545155

>>24545294

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 16-20 of 29

>>24498048

>>24545148

>>24545155

>>24545294

>>24545505

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 21-25 of 29

>>24498048

>>24545148

>>24545155

>>24545294

>>24545505

>>24545520

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/jcvi_foi_disclosure_analysis_sept_2025.pdf

What the JCVI Really Considered: Precaution, Risk-Benefit and What Was Hidden

Based on FOI Request FOI/212(1), 30 June 2025

Ethical Approach UK

Date: 9 September 2025

Introduction

On 30 June 2025, Ethical Approach UK submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The request sought evidence of how the precautionary principle and risk-benefit analysis were applied in relation to COVID-19 vaccination guidance, particularly for younger and low-risk groups.

The FOI response, received in September 2025, together with an unpublished internal presentation released under disclosure, provide important insights into how the JCVI approached these questions and, crucially, what was not considered or communicated.

Pages 26-29 of 29

>>24498031

>>24498048

>>24355982

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/talla_analysis_published_05052026.pdf

An Analysis of

OPERATION TALLA

Based on Statements

made by

Owen Weatherill

Alan Speirs

Martin Hewitt

Published by: Ethical Approach UK

Date: 5 May 2026

This document runs to 198 pages. I won't be putting much of it up here. I've not yet read it myself but it would eat up a lot of time after reading to post it all. Anyone taking an interest should read the document from the link above.

Forensic Findings Report - Part 1

Operation Talla: Commencement, Command Structure and Institutional Tension

Author: Ian Clayton

Date: 3 May 2026

1. Documents reviewed

The present analysis concerns:

• Owen Weatherill statement, dated 14 April 2023, on behalf of the NPCC.

• Alan Speirs statement, dated 31 August 2023, on behalf of the NPCC, pertaining to Police Scotland.

• Alan Speirs corporate statement, dated 31 March 2025, on behalf of Police Scotland.

• Martin Hewitt statement, dated 29 June 2023, on behalf of the NPCC.

2. Primary finding: Operation Talla has no single stable commencement account

The first major finding is that the documents do not present one consistent account of when Operation Talla began.

Alan Speirs’ 2025 corporate statement gives the most detailed Scotland-specific account. It states:

“Operation Talla was established within Police Scotland on 29 January 2020, following a Scottish Government Resilience Room (SGORR) meeting regarding the Covid-19 pandemic which was chaired by the First Minister.”

That is a clear and direct statement. It places Operation Talla in Scotland in existence from 29 January 2020.

The same statement continues:

“As a result of the meeting, Police Scotland initiated a command structure to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic and activated organisational plans for a pandemic scenario.”

That is legally important. It means the Scottish operation was not merely discussed. A command structure was initiated.

Speirs then states:

“This operational response was given the name ‘Operation Talla’.”

That places the operational name itself at the January 2020 stage.

By contrast, Martin Hewitt’s NPCC statement gives a different national account:

“Operation Talla was the operational name given to that response. It was established in March 2020, with a formal commencement briefing to all Chiefs on 10 March 2020.”

This creates an immediate tension:

Police Scotland / Speirs: Operation Talla established in Scotland on 29 January 2020.

NPCC / Hewitt: Operation Talla established nationally in March 2020, with formal briefing on 10 March 2020.

The likely reconciliation is that Scotland had an earlier operational structure which was later adopted nationally by the NPCC. Speirs expressly supports that interpretation:

“That operational name was subsequently adopted more broadly by the NPCC to ensure consistency across the United Kingdom.”

This is a major finding. It suggests that Operation Talla may have had a Scottish genesis or early Scottish operational identity, later adopted nationally.

3. Secondary finding: 20 March 2020 appears to be a documentation date, not the true operational start date Speirs’ 2025 statement says:

“On 20 March 2020, Police Scotland published the first version of the Operation Talla Gold Strategy Document, which reflected the objectives set during the Gold Group meeting on 30 January 2020.”

This is critical.

The 20 March date does not appear, on that account, to be the date Operation Talla began. It appears to be the date the first Gold Strategy Document was published.

That matters because the document itself states that the strategy reflected objectives already set on 30 January 2020. Therefore, any later institutional account relying on 20 March 2020 as the date Operation Talla was “put in place” risks conflating operational establishment with formal strategy publication.

That distinction is legally significant.

You'll have to read the rest of this "Forensic Findings Report" on the above pdf link….it's too much to post in its entirety.

>>24498031

https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/scottish-news/snp-predator-jordan-linden-jailed-37116895

SNP predator Jordan Linden jailed for 18 months for series of sex offences

The former leader of North Lanarkshire Council was convicted of 10 separate offences which took place over a decade

Douglas Dickie

06 May 2026

Jordan Linden has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for a series of sex offences against young men. A former rising star in the SNP, Linden was handed his sentence at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Wednesday.

The one-time leader of North Lanarkshire Council was convicted of 10 separate offences in March following a trial at Falkirk Sheriff Court, including five sexual assaults. The 30-year-old was also found guilty of three counts of engaging in a course of conduct causing fear or alarm and of charges involving sexual communication.

The offences spanned the period 2011 to 2021 with the youngest victim being just 14. He was initially due to be sentenced on Tuesday but this was delayed as his lawyer was absent.

A crowd outside the court had gathered as Linden arrived for his appearance on Wednesday morning. They could be heard shouting "Scottish Nonce Party" and "beast" as he entered the court building.

Linden was also placed on the sex offenders' register for 10 years by Sheriff Christopher Shead, who said he had "reached the conclusion" that "custody is the only appropriate disposal". Linden remained emotionless as sentence was handed down but blew a kiss to a family member in the public gallery as he was led away.

Linden’s lawyer David Moggach KC had urged the Sheriff to consider alternatives to custody. He said that Linden had been diagnosed with autism in 2021 and has not offended since then, and pointed out that Linden was a teenager himself at the time of some of the earlier offences.

Linden previously denying the offences against him, saying they either did not take place, or were consensual. But Mr Moggach said there was "an awareness on Mr Linden’s part of how his behaviour was simply unacceptable". He added: "He now appreciates that he overstepped certain boundaries and now knows where those boundaries are. This has been a hugely significant and sobering experience for him."

Linden had earlier refused to comment when approached by the media outside the court. He initially resigned as the leader of North Lanarkshire Council in July 2022 after reports of alleged sexual harassment emerged, leading to the collapse of the SNP administration in the area.

Complaints had also been made against him when he was chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament. During his seven-day trial, jurors heard that the victims had been stroked, poked, prodded, touched inappropriately and sent partially naked and sometimes explicit selfies by Linden.

Witnesses spoke of Linden getting into beds or bunks with them, or trying to pull at their belts and waistbands. One man, who joined the SYP at the same time as Linden when they were both 15 said Linden's touching, on the face or the cheek or the neck, was "relentless" but when he told a youth worker at the parliament it was dismissed as "just Jordan".He said that despite him making it “abundantly clear” he was straight, Linden phoned him in the middle of the night “panting”, sent him photographs of his genitalia, touched his bum, tried to pull his trousers down, and poked him, even in meetings. He said what he termed "the 'Just Jordan' behaviour" became more prevalent as time went on, and made him feel vulnerable and "sick to the stomach". He eventually left the Youth Parliament as a result.

>>24578082

…………………………………………………………………………….continued……………………………………………………………………………..

In a statement following the sentencing, the SYP board said: "SYP recognises the seriousness of this case and the concern it has caused, and we reiterate that our thoughts remain with those who were harmed by Linden’s actions.

"SYP twice commissioned external investigations into how we handled allegations made against Linden in 2016, which established there was no evidence of criminality based on the information we had at that time, and that we had properly followed procedures and guidelines in place. In November 2017, we also referred fresh allegations to Police Scotland, which is responsible for investigating potential criminality, and it later confirmed that no criminality had been established and its inquiry concluded.

"After further allegations emerged in 2022, the SYP fully supported Police Scotland and the Crown Office investigation which subsequently led to Linden’s conviction."

Linden was prominent in the youth wing of the SNP and was pictured with Nicola Sturgeon. He was elected a councillor in 2017, jus a year after he resigned from his role on the SYP. He became council leader in 2022 but his tenure lasted just two months.

The SNP has been accused of downplaying or ignoring complaints about Linden by party members who raised concerns. When the allegations first emerged, Nat bosses allegedly threatened journalists to stop running stories.

A witness in the trial described how he went for help in the SNP but was ignored or the matter was downplayed. Other witnesses also said their complaints about him were downplayed or ignored by adults in the organisation.

Several said they had been reluctant to complain about Linden because of his power and sway in the Youth Parliament and the SNP.

>>24498048

https://x.com/EthicalApproach/status/2052411919869374643

ETHICAL APPROACH UK

@EthicalApproach

Today, a formal evidential notice has been served upon:

• the National Police Chiefs’ Council; • the Metropolitan Police Directorate of Legal Services; and

• the Judicial Office.

The attached public analysis does not allege judicial impropriety. It asks something much more serious:

Whether the courts were provided with the complete factual and operational picture surrounding Metropolitan Police CRN 6029679/21 and the wider Operation Talla structure.

The analysis is based not upon speculation, but upon primary-source material, including:

• NPCC disclosures;

• Operation Talla communications;

• Metropolitan Police handling evidence;

• command-level meeting records;

• Police Scotland disclosures;

• and documentary evidence demonstrating national coordination structures operating during the relevant period.

The emerging evidential picture appears to be fundamentally incompatible with the simplistic public narrative that, “there was no investigation” because the evidence demonstrates:

• national discussion;

• senior command involvement;

• dissemination pathways;

• legal directorate engagement;

• coordinated operational positioning;

• and structured closure handling.

In constitutional matters, the issue is not merely whether information was said. It is whether enough was said.

The correspondence and attached analysis may be viewed here:

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/email_to_NPCC_

>>24498048

>>24581493

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/email_to_NPCC_MPSDLS_JO_07052026.pdf

ethical approach -emailed formal notice to NPCC met police legal services and judicial office

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole Told the

Whole Truth?

An evidence-led analysis of primary evidence

Author: Ian Clayton

Date: 7 May 2026

Introduction

In 2023 and 2024, the courts were repeatedly told that the

Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) did not conduct an

investigation into Crime Reference Number 6029679/21.

That position became central to the legal narrative

surrounding the handling of allegations submitted to the

MPS in December 2021 concerning matters connected to

the UK Covid-19 response and vaccine programme.

However, a growing body of disclosed material now raises

an obvious and unavoidable question:

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole provided with the full

factual picture concerning the handling, assessment,

coordination and national dissemination of the matter?

This paper examines that question by reference to

primary-source material presently available in the public

domain.

It focuses specifically upon:

• the Metropolitan Police Service;

• the handling of CRN 6029679/21;

• the involvement of senior policing structures;

• the dissemination of information nationally through

Operation Talla structures;

• and the apparent contradiction between public/legal

representations and contemporaneous documentary

evidence.

This is not an allegation of judicial wrongdoing. Rather, it is

an examination of whether the factual account placed

before the court was materially incomplete.

The Official Position

The essential public-facing position advanced by policing

bodies was straightforward:

• a crime reference number was generated;

• material was reviewed;

• no criminal investigation was undertaken;

• and the matter was closed.

This position became highly significant legally.

Why?

Because if no investigation existed, then many of the legal

obligations and scrutiny mechanisms ordinarily

associated with criminal investigation could potentially be

avoided.

The distinction between:

• “a report being assessed”; and

• “an investigation”

therefore became absolutely central.

The documentary evidence now available paints a far

more complex picture.

pages 1-5 of 15

>>24498048

>>24581493

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/email_to_NPCC_MPSDLS_JO_07052026.pdf

ethical approach -emailed formal notice to NPCC met police legal services and judicial office

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole Told the

Whole Truth?

An evidence-led analysis of primary evidence

Author: Ian Clayton

Date: 7 May 2026

Introduction

In 2023 and 2024, the courts were repeatedly told that the

Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) did not conduct an

investigation into Crime Reference Number 6029679/21.

That position became central to the legal narrative

surrounding the handling of allegations submitted to the

MPS in December 2021 concerning matters connected to

the UK Covid-19 response and vaccine programme.

However, a growing body of disclosed material now raises

an obvious and unavoidable question:

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole provided with the full

factual picture concerning the handling, assessment,

coordination and national dissemination of the matter?

This paper examines that question by reference to

primary-source material presently available in the public

domain.

It focuses specifically upon:

• the Metropolitan Police Service;

• the handling of CRN 6029679/21;

• the involvement of senior policing structures;

• the dissemination of information nationally through

Operation Talla structures;

• and the apparent contradiction between public/legal

representations and contemporaneous documentary

evidence.

This is not an allegation of judicial wrongdoing. Rather, it is

an examination of whether the factual account placed

before the court was materially incomplete.

The Official Position

The essential public-facing position advanced by policing

bodies was straightforward:

• a crime reference number was generated;

• material was reviewed;

• no criminal investigation was undertaken;

• and the matter was closed.

This position became highly significant legally.

Why?

Because if no investigation existed, then many of the legal

obligations and scrutiny mechanisms ordinarily

associated with criminal investigation could potentially be

avoided.

The distinction between:

• “a report being assessed”; and

• “an investigation”

therefore became absolutely central.

The documentary evidence now available paints a far

more complex picture.

pages 6-10 of 15

>>24498048

>>24581493

>>24582206

>>24582222

https://ethicalapproach.co.uk/email_to_NPCC_MPSDLS_JO_07052026.pdf

ethical approach -emailed formal notice to NPCC met police legal services and judicial office

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole Told the

Whole Truth?

An evidence-led analysis of primary evidence

Author: Ian Clayton

Date: 7 May 2026

Introduction

In 2023 and 2024, the courts were repeatedly told that the

Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) did not conduct an

investigation into Crime Reference Number 6029679/21.

That position became central to the legal narrative

surrounding the handling of allegations submitted to the

MPS in December 2021 concerning matters connected to

the UK Covid-19 response and vaccine programme.

However, a growing body of disclosed material now raises

an obvious and unavoidable question:

Was His Honour Mr Justice Poole provided with the full

factual picture concerning the handling, assessment,

coordination and national dissemination of the matter?

This paper examines that question by reference to

primary-source material presently available in the public

domain.

It focuses specifically upon:

• the Metropolitan Police Service;

• the handling of CRN 6029679/21;

• the involvement of senior policing structures;

• the dissemination of information nationally through

Operation Talla structures;

• and the apparent contradiction between public/legal

representations and contemporaneous documentary

evidence.

This is not an allegation of judicial wrongdoing. Rather, it is

an examination of whether the factual account placed

before the court was materially incomplete.

The Official Position

The essential public-facing position advanced by policing

bodies was straightforward:

• a crime reference number was generated;

• material was reviewed;

• no criminal investigation was undertaken;

• and the matter was closed.

This position became highly significant legally.

Why?

Because if no investigation existed, then many of the legal

obligations and scrutiny mechanisms ordinarily

associated with criminal investigation could potentially be

avoided.

The distinction between:

• “a report being assessed”; and

• “an investigation”

therefore became absolutely central.

The documentary evidence now available paints a far

more complex picture.

pages 11-15 of 15