Costs incurred in relation to the Emma Caldwell public inquiry: FOI release

Information requested

a) The total costs incurred by Scottish Government in relation to the Emma Caldwell public inquiry;

b) A breakdown of these costs (such as legal, staffing or the hire of external consultants);

c) How much, if any, of this expense has been reimbursed by the public inquiry as per its mechanism for some participants to claim back legal expenses incurred; and

d) How much human resource has gone into the Scottish Government's Emma Caldwell public inquiry commitments (such as the number of staffing hours taken so far or how many officials have worked on the responses).

Response

On 7 March 2024, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs confirmed to Parliament her intention to hold a judge-led statutory Public Inquiry to provide answers to Emma Caldwell’s family and all victims and survivors in this case.

An extensive programme of work is required to set up a Public Inquiry and the Scottish Government will ensure that the Emma Caldwell Public Inquiry is set up and properly resourced to carry out its important work. Preparatory work is underway, however there is no Inquiry until a Chair has been appointed and the Inquiry has been formally set up. As an appeal has been lodged, the case is sub judice, and with a further criminal investigation pending, we are still at the very early stages of the work required to set up the Inquiry. Further details of the Inquiry will be set out once live legal proceedings in the case have concluded and a Chair has been appointed. We will work with the Chair and Emma's family to establish the Terms of Reference.

For questions a) to c), ongoing work to establish the Inquiry is part of a wider divisional remit whose work encompasses more than the Public Inquiry. As the Inquiry has not yet been formally set up, no costs have been incurred or reimbursed.

In relation to question d), preparations for the Caldwell Inquiry are at an early stage and a small number of staff are responding to developments as one part of their existing responsibilities. It is not therefore possible to attribute accurately a human resource cost to the time they have spent dealing with this inquiry preparation. In time, dedicated sponsorship arrangements will be put in place which will enable a more accurate assessment.

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