Part 1

Victims and Witnesses Commissioner for Scotland

Information gathering

Offence of Commissioner disclosing confidential information
17
1
A person mentioned in subsection (2) commits an offence if—
a
the person knowingly discloses any information which—
i
has been obtained by or on behalf of the Commissioner for the purposes of exercising the Commissioner’s functions, and
ii
at the time of disclosure is not, and has not previously been, in the public domain, and
b
the disclosure is not authorised by subsection (3).
2
The persons referred to in subsection (1) are persons who are or have been—
a
the Commissioner,
b
a member of the Commissioner’s staff,
c
an agent of the Commissioner.
3
For the purposes of subsection (1)(b), disclosure is authorised only so far as it is—
a
made with the consent of the person from whom the information was obtained,
b
subject to subsection (4), necessary for the purpose of enabling or assisting the exercise of the Commissioner’s functions under this Act, or
c
made for the purposes of legal proceedings, whether criminal or civil (including information disclosed for the purposes of the investigation of any offence or suspected offence).
4
Subsection (3)(b) does not authorise the disclosure of information which leads, or is likely to lead, to the identification of—
a
victims,
b
witnesses,
c
persons suspected of committing of an offence but who have not been charged in relation to that offence.
5
A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable—
a
on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or
b
on conviction on indictment, to a fine.
S. 17 not in force at Royal Assent, see s. 116(2)