Brickbat: No Right To Know

Police Scotland refused to release crime data requested by the Scottish Daily Express through a Freedom of Information request. The newspaper asked for the number of incidents, police call-outs, arrests, and recorded crimes connected to several hotels in Scotland that have been used to house asylum seekers. Police officials said they would not provide the information because releasing it could increase tensions in local communities and might lead to protests or violence around the hotels. Critics, including some politicians, argued that the public has a right to know the scale of crime and accused the police of hiding important information.