Open Update: FOI news from the Scottish Information Commissioner |
|
|
|
|
FOI news from the Scottish Information Commissioner |
|
|
|
|
|
Has freedom of information achieved its goals, or is it falling short after 20 years?
That is the question up for debate at this year’s Festival of Politics at the Scottish Parliament – and you can be part of the discussion!
To mark FOI’s 20th anniversary celebrations, this event will explore whether FOI has lived up to its promise of enhancing transparency and public trust. Taking part in the discussion will be Scottish Information Commissioner David Hamilton, alongside campaigner Patricia Anderson, from the Give Them Time campaign - which used FOI to successfully ensure that all eligible four-year-olds in Scotland could receive a funded nursery place if deferring school.
Further speakers on the panel will be announced soon, but early booking is encouraged to ensure you don’t miss out on what is sure to be a fascinating discussion!
The Festival of Politics brings together leading experts from the worlds of politics, the arts, business, the media, academia and the third sector for a deep dive into issues dominating the news agenda. Running over three days in August 2025, the festival will feature 30 diverse sessions, making it a fantastic opportunity for an engaging and insightful day out at the Scottish Parliament!
Date: Friday 22 August 2025 Time: 2.30pm Venue: Scottish Parliament Cost: £5 / £7.50 |
|
|
|
|
|
Calling all FOI-users: has your FOI-use led to positive change?
Users of FOI from across Europe are invited to make a nomination for the Helen Darbishire Award, which honours individuals and organisations who have effectively used their right to information to drive positive change in society. Whether that be through advancing human rights, promoting environmental protection, or improving government accountability, the award highlights outstanding contributions to openness.
By shining a light on the achievements of all those who use their rights, whether it be campaigners, journalist, academics or practitioners, the award aims to highlight the importance of the right to information and inspire others to utilise this powerful tool. For more information, visit Access Info Europe's website. |
|
FOI in action: How FOI helped shape Council Climate Scorecards For their 2025 Council Climate Scorecards, Climate Emergency UK (CE UK) used environmental information requests to gather data not publicly available, such as staffing levels, lobbying activities, and housing efficiency.
CE UK aimed to take a collaborative approach when preparing their questions, to try and ensure that the data received was as robust, accurate and comparable as possible, while also seeking to reduce the impact for authorities.
A consistent set of questions was sent to all UK councils, with wording tested in advance through an advisory group of council staff, councillors and experts, alongside a pilot scheme. Questions were also shared early to ensure councils were alert to the request ahead of formal submission, with CE UK noting that this was done to help reduce pressure on FOI teams and improve response quality.
The data collected was used alongside public information to create each council’s Scorecard. Both the responses and final scores have been published by CE UK.
CE UK’s approach is an interesting example of requesters and authorities working together to produce more targeted and useful data—while also creating publicly available resources that can ultimately reduce future requests.
What do you think of CE UK’s collaborative approach? Have you been involved in a similar collaborative project on another issue? Get in touch to let us know! |
|
Commissioner joins Executive Committee of new European FOI Network At the recent International Conference of Information Commissioners (ICIC), which took place in Berlin in June, Commissioner David Hamilton was elected to the Executive Committee of a new network - the European Network for Transparency and Right to Information, or ENTRI for short. ENTRI was established to support the sharing of experience and best practice among commissioners across Europe, with the first formal meeting of the group due to take place soon.
Elsewhere at the ICIC conference, more than 50 information commissioners and other stakeholders took part in discussions, debates and exchanges on a wide range of FOI-related issues. The main focus this year was on delivering effective access to environmental information and supporting civil society to exercise their information rights.
The conference also heard about recent threats to access to information in some territories - including India and Germany - while commissioners shared details of work being done to encourage more effective digital publication and explore the use of AI in support of certain work areas.
Commissioners agreed a joint statement highlighting the importance of accessing timely environmental information through digital routes, which will be published on the 2025 ICIC conference website shortly. An associated event also saw international civil society organisations agree their own Declaration on the Right to Information and Environmental Justice.
More information from the 2025 ICIC is available here. |
|
Scottish Public Information Forum The latest Scottish Public Information Forum was held on Monday 16 June, chaired by Dr Ben Worthy, academic and FOI expert. Around 55 attendees joined the session to hear updates on Katy Clark MSP’s FOI Reform Bill, which was introduced in Parliament on 2 June 2025. Responses to the Bill came from Commissioner David Hamilton and Carole Ewart from the Campaign for FOI in Scotland (CFoIS), while the FOI team at the Scottish Government provided an update their current priorities – which include the forthcoming consultation on extending FOI to cover care service providers. Save the date: The next SPIF meeting will celebrate International Right to Know Day 2025, and will take place on Friday 26 September, 11am–1pm at the Scottish Parliament. We’ll share more details as they become available. |
|
Statistics collection - new format coming soon... We’re shortly going to be changing the way we collect public authority FOI statistics, using a new tool for the submission of data. An email with further details will be sent shortly to our public authority contacts so, if you submit data to us, keep an eye on your inbox for further details. If there are any questions in the meantime, feel free to contact us at enquiries@foi.scot.
All the statistics that are supplied to us are published on our website through an interactive visual resource, which is updated quarterly. Check out our statistics portal here. |
|
|
|
|
|
The public interest must be assessed before refusing a manifestly unreasonable EIR request The Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations (the EIRs) allow public authorities to refuse an information request if the request is ‘manifestly unreasonable’, similar to the ‘vexatious’ provision in the FOI Act. A key difference between the two provisions, however, is that the EIR provision is subject to a ‘public interest test’.
In Decision 132/2025, we found for the first time that the public interest favoured complying with a request, despite it being ‘manifestly unreasonable’.
In their submissions, the requester presented detailed and compelling public interest arguments in favour of disclosure. In contrast, the authority took a casual approach to this test, failing to properly consider the particular facts and circumstances of the request.
We ultimately concluded that the public interest in protecting the integrity of the EIRs and upholding the right of access to environmental information favoured complying with the request in this case, despite the significant resource required to do so.
This decision highlights the importance of carefully considering the public interest in each case it applies. Authorities must ensure that their analysis is specific to the circumstances of the request – and is not based on general statements only. |
|
Authorities must make sure they consider the precise terms of a request In Decision 112/2025, the requester asked for social work referrals made during a specified date range. The authority applied exemptions to the information initially, before later stating that the withheld information fell outside of the date range specified by the requester. It went on to state that it did not in fact hold any information falling within the scope of the request.
The Commissioner accepted this but criticised the authority for not properly considering the date range provided in the request.
Authorities must carefully consider the precise terms of information requests. This includes paying close attention to any date range (or any other details) the requester has provided. Failure to do so can lead to confusing and inaccurate responses to requesters and additional work for public bodies. |
|
When is information held by an external company held on behalf of an authority? Under FOI law, authorities must provide the information they hold at the time a request is received. Information held by another person or organisation on behalf of the authority is also considered to be “held” by the authority under FOI.
In Decision 095/2025, the requester asked the authority for software renewal dates. The authority, having outsourced ICT services, said it did not hold the information.
Our decision considers that the closer an outsourced service is to the core functions of an authority, the more likely it is that information about that service is held on the authority’s behalf. In this case, while ICT is essential to the authority’s work, the licence dates weren’t sufficiently connected to be considered “held” on its behalf by the external provider.
However, while we accepted ICT services are critical to the authority’s work, we were not persuaded that the specific information requested was closely enough linked to a core function of the authority.
We therefore accepted the authority did not hold the information, and that the external company did not hold it on behalf of the authority. |
|
Copyright statements should not be standard text in FOI responses Public authorities should ensure that they only include ‘copyright statements’ in FOI responses if it is appropriate for them to do so – e.g. where the disclosed information contains material which is subject to third party copyright.
We have seen a couple of examples recently where public authorities have included copyright statements as ‘standard’ - with the statement having no bearing on the information disclosed. We’ve even seen them included in correspondence where no information has been disclosed to the requester!
The FOI Act’s Section 60 Code of Practice is clear in this point – such statements should only be included “where it is appropriate to do so and should not be included as a standard reference.”
Adding a statement where is not appropriate is misleading for requesters, and may inhibit them from referencing information which they have a legitimate right to share. Think carefully, therefore, before including such statements and, if it is appropriate, make it clear to the requester which specific information is subject to copyright, and which information is not. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7 July 2025 - Collection of FOI statistics for Quarter 1 2025-26 opens The submission window for public authority FOI statistics covering the period from 1 April to 30 June 2025 will open on 7 July.
|
|
11 July 2025 – Deadline for nominations for Helen Darbishire Award Given the Europe-wide scope of this award, the deadline for nominations is 23:59 CET (22:59 BST) on Friday, 11 July. For nominations visit Access to Info Europe's website. |
|
22 August 2025 – Festival of Politics: Freedom of information: falling short after 20 years? Join us at Scottish Parliament to hear the discussion on how successful a tool FOI really is, 20 years on. Book your Festival of Politics ticket today. |
|
26 September 2025 - Scottish Public Information Forum (SPIF) meeting SPIF meeting to mark International Right to Know Day 2025. Registration details to be announced in due course. |
|
18 November 2025 – Holyrood 2025 FOI Conference Save the date for the 2025 Holyrood FOI Conference, taking place in central Edinburgh. Further details will be available shortly. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
