Without a legal basis, the Police Authority disclosed information on persons deemed to have connections to criminal gangs with the aim of preventing them from visiting certain pubs (‘the pub list’)

In the Medelpad local police area, a list was produced of persons deemed to be involved in criminal activities connected to criminal networks within the police area. At a meeting, the list and information about the persons was given to representatives of a number of pubs with the aim of preventing those persons from visiting the pubs.

The information that was disclosed came from the Police Authority’s intelligence gathering activities and was subject to confidentiality. The Parliamentary Ombudsman states that there was no legal basis in the confidentiality legislation for the disclosure. According to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, nor was it compatible with the right to move freely under (inter alia) the Instrument of Government or the right to respect for private life under the European Convention.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman takes the findings seriously and criticises the Police Authority for what happened.