Law chief to reveal Dunblane police file

SCOTLAND’S most senior law officer was last night ordered to overturn a rule which banned the police report into the Dunblane massacre from being made public for 100 years.

A cabinet meeting of the Executive yesterday instructed Colin Boyd QC, the Lord Advocate, to find a way to reveal the contents of the secret file surrounding the killing spree carried out by Thomas Hamilton in 1996, which left 16 children and their teacher dead.

The order comes in a week of widespread concern and speculation that the confidential dossier linked politicians and legal figures to Hamilton.

Earlier this week, opposition MSPs had called on the Executive to start a review of the Dunblane investigation following claims the police report had been suppressed by the Crown Office.

The concerns centre on a report prepared for Stirling procurator fiscal by Central Scotland Police after they investigated "incidents" at a youth club summer camp held by Hamilton in 1991, five years before he struck at Dunblane primary school.

It is understood that during yesterday’s cabinet meeting, the Lord Advocate expressed concern about releasing the report because it is believed to detail incidents involving Hamilton and a number of children who were under his care on the camp.

But after discussing the possibility of protecting the children, who are now believed to be in their mid-twenties, the Lord Advocate agreed to reassess the situation.

Last night, a spokesman for the Executive said the matter was urgently being looked at.

He said: "During yesterday’s cabinet meeting, the Lord Advocate reported on recent coverage about records from the Dunblane inquiry.

"He stressed that protecting children had to be the overriding priority but he was aware, however, that the coverage had raised concern about information being withheld. The cabinet accepted that there was a high level of public interest and, as a result, the Lord Advocate will now look at the feasibility of making information on the report available. The Lord Advocate will be looking at the possibility of making available copies with names of individuals and details which could identify them deleted for the protection of children."

Despite the Lord Advocate’s intention to look at the report, it was not clear last night whether the decision to release the information would be for him alone to make, or whether it would require the consent of others, such as Lord Cullen, the senior judge who conducted the original inquiry and ordered that the contents of the police file used during the hearings should be kept secret for 100 years.

The dossier is understood to have condemned Hamilton as "an unsavoury character and an unstable personality" and demanded that his firearms licences be revoked. It is believed to point at a number of incidents, including the alleged offences carried out at the camp in 1991.

The decision yesterday represents a major U-turn for the Cabinet. Only last week, a spokeswoman for the Executive said that it was extremely unlikely access would be given to the report as it identified a number of children abused by Hamilton.

The Scottish Parliament yesterday passed new legislation to establish a blacklist of people considered unsuitable for work with children.

Under the Protection of Children (Scotland) Bill, by the end of this year, those people working with children who harm or put them at risk will be placed on the list. Officials believe the move will prevent people like Hamilton from working with children.

Cathy Jamieson, the minister for young people, described the passing of the bill as a "historic step".