False allegations of rape or sexual assault: FOI release
- Published
- 2 August 2017
- Directorate
- Justice Directorate
- Part of
- Law and order, Public sector
Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.
FOI reference: FOI/17/01753
Date received: 23 July 2017
Date responded: 2 August 2017
Information requested
Reports or other documents concerning or referring to false allegations of rape or sexual assault, and any statistics concerning false allegations of rape or sexual assault.
Response
I enclose a copy of a report produced by the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales concerning alleged false allegations of rape and domestic violence. This is also available on the Crown Prosecution Service website (130k PDF).
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. The reasons why we don't have the information are explained in the Annex to this letter.
Reasons for not providing information
The Scottish Government does not have the information.
The Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for concerning statistics relating to false allegations of rape and sexual assault. In Scots Law, there are a number of offences which could be used to prosecute individuals who make false allegations of criminal conduct. Examples of the type of offence which would be relevant include wasting police time, or, when the falsehood has been maintained, attempting to pervert the course of justice. These are general offences, and as such I am afraid it is not possible to provide a figure for the number of people prosecuted or convicted of these offences as a result of false allegations of rape or sexual assault.
I also confirm that the CPS Report is the only report/information held by the Scottish Government concerning false allegations of rape or sexual assault.
This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.
About FOI
The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses
Contact
Please quote the FOI reference
Central Enquiry Unit
Email: ceu@gov.scot
Phone: 0300 244 4000
The Scottish Government
St Andrew's House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG
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