Open Update: FOI news from the Scottish Information Commissioner |
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FOI news from the Scottish Information Commissioner |
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Views revealed on extending FOI rights to care providers
The Scottish Government has published the analysis of responses to its consultation on extending Freedom of Information (FOI) rights to cover private and third sector providers of care home and 'care at home' services.
Overall, the consultation found majority support for the proposals, with over half of respondents favouring the extension of FOI to these providers. Support was notably stronger among individuals (65%) than organisations (37%). Those in favour highlighted the benefits of greater transparency and accountability, particularly given the vital role these services play in supporting vulnerable people. Many also felt that extending FOI rights would help service users and their families access information and gain reassurance about the care provided.
While some respondents raised concerns about potential resource and cost implications for providers, overall responses recognised the opportunity to strengthen openness, accountability and public confidence in the sector.
Scottish Information Commissioner David Hamilton continues to support this extension of FOI:
"Transparency should not depend on who delivers a public service. Extending FOI rights to care home and ‘care at home’ providers will help close the gap and ensure that people receiving care, their families and carers have access to the information they need, while supporting a culture of openness, accountability and continuous improvement across the sector."
We have published our response to the consultation on our website and will continue to keep you informed of any future developments. |
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Holyrood Conference 2026 We are pleased to announce that the Scottish Information Commissioner will be supporting Holyrood's Freedom of Information 2026 Conference in Edinburgh on 17 November 2026. The event brings together policymakers, regulators, practitioners, campaigners and journalists to discuss current challenges and future developments in freedom of information in Scotland.
The day will feature keynote speeches, panel discussions and interactive workshops covering topics including AI in FOI, FOI fundamentals, lessons from interventions, and approaches to proactive publication. Delegates will also have opportunities to network, share experiences and discuss emerging issues and best practice.
Find out more on the Holyrood website.
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Visit from Ghanian Right to Information Commission In August, we welcomed delegates from the Ghana Right to Information Commission to Scotland.
Commissioner Genevieve Shirley Lartey Esq, and Senior Officer Audrey Korlekuor Odjeawo took part in a programme of presentations and discussions focused on access to information across our two regimes.
Scotland’s first Commissioner, Kevin Dunion, and current Commissioner David Hamilton discussed the development of FOI in Scotland over the last 20 years, while Commissioner Lartey discussed Ghana’s experience of implementing its 2018 Right to Information Act.
Delegates also met with colleagues from the Scottish Government, Katy Clark MSP and the Campaign for FOI in Scotland to discuss a range of issues, including the need for FOI reform in Scotland.
The visit provided a valuable opportunity to share learning, discuss common challenges, and explore best practice in the delivery of information rights. It also helped strengthen links between Scotland and Ghana and highlighted the importance of international collaboration in promoting openness and transparency.
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AI: Asset or liability for Scotland’s FOI system? The Scottish Public Information Forum (SPIF) returns this October, hosted by the Campaign for FOI in Scotland. This free event will explore the challenges and opportunities which AI presents for FOI.
Dr Ben Worthy from Birkbeck College will discuss his research on FOI and AI while Commissioner David Hamilton will highlight a Europe-wide project to explore how AI is impacting FOI regulators and public bodies across the continent.
The meeting will be held at Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh on Monday 5 October between 2 – 4pm, with the option to join online. Tickets are free and available to book via Eventbrite.
For more information about the Campaign for FOI in Scotland, visit their website. |
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Making FOI more accessible We are pleased to launch a new Easy Read FOI guide, designed to help people understand their freedom of information rights in a clear and accessible way.
We encourage public authorities to signpost people who may benefit from additional support to this resource. We also invite third sector organisations, advocacy groups and advice services to promote the guide and help it reach those who need it most.
Improving access to information remains a key priority for us. Alongside our Easy Read guide, we have also produced a series of British Sign Language (BSL) videos to help people understand and use their FOI rights.
Together, these resources help to ensure that everyone can access information about their FOI rights.
You can also find out more about our 2025-2031 BSL Plan on our website. |
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Help us keep our records up to date As the public sector continues to evolve, we are reviewing our records to ensure we hold the correct contact details for Chief Executives, Principals, or other senior leaders within public bodies.
If you work for a public body that has recently undergone a leadership change, please let us know the name of the new postholder, along with the details of a generic email address that can be used for official communications.
To help us gather this information more efficiently, we will also be including a request for these details in our next statistics collection, which opens on 5 October. However, if any changes occur after that date, or you have an appeal ongoing with us, please continue to keep us informed to ensure our records remain accurate and up to date. |
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Questions can still be FOI requests… A question can be a valid FOI request even if it does not mention FOI or describe itself as request for information.
In Decision 179/2026, a requester asked an authority to provide “clarification” in response to several questions. The authority did not treat any of the questions as valid requests for information. We found that two of these questions were valid FOI requests because they were asking for recorded information about the authority’s powers, duties and decision-making.
Public authorities should focus on what correspondence is actually asking for, not how the correspondence is described. If it’s unclear what recorded information is being requested, or whether the requester is asking for recorded information at all, authorities should consider asking for clarification. |
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Extensions to environmental information requests Under Scotland’s FOI laws, requests for environmental information must be responded to under the EIRs.
In some cases, the EIRs allow public authorities to extend the usual response deadline of 20 working days by up to another 20 working days. They can only do this where the volume and complexity of the information requested would make it impractical to respond within the usual deadline.
In Decision 188/2026, an authority extended the usual deadline because of the amount of information requested. However, we found that the request did not involve enough information, or enough complexity, to justify the extension.
Public authorities cannot extend the response deadline just because a request is difficult. They must be able to show both that the request was complex and that it covered a large amount of information. |
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The ‘court records’ exemption will only apply to information which is solely held in court records FOI law allows information to be withheld if an exemption applies. Some exemptions are ‘absolute’, which means that the authority doesn’t have to consider the public interest before deciding that information can be withheld. Other exemptions are ‘qualified’, which means that the public authority must apply a public interest test before withholding information.
The FOI Act contains absolute exemptions for information contained within court records. However, these exemptions only apply where the public authority holds the information solely because it is contained in a court record.
In Decision 162/2026, information from documents used in Mental Health Tribunal proceedings had been added to a spreadsheet for research. We found that the court records exemption did not apply to the spreadsheet because the spreadsheet was not a court record, and the authority did not hold the spreadsheet solely because it was contained within a court record.
Public authorities should ensure they focus on the information actually covered by the request. They should not assume the exemption applies just because the information relates to, or came from, information contained within court records. |
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Interventions and Improvement |
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Intervention extinguishes FOI delays at the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service We are pleased to confirm the recent closure of our intervention to improve the FOI performance of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).
Our team worked closely with the SFRS to support improvement, and the SFRS’s most recent figures show that a fantastic 99% of FOI requests were responded to on time. During the intervention, the SFRS re-examined its FOI processes to identify areas where FOI difficulties could arise and then devised a range of practical solutions.
Our next edition will provide details on how this improvement was achieved – so watch this space… |
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1 September – commencement of standard reporting of ‘clarification’ data From 1 September 2026 we’ll be asking public bodies to report details of the number of times a clarification request under section 1(3) of the FOI Act has been made, as part of our quarterly statistical returns. |
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5 October – Scottish Public Information Forum A hybrid meeting held online and in Edinburgh with reports delivered by the Commissioner, the UK ICO, Scottish Government and the Campaign for Freedom of Information in Scotland (CFoIS). For more information visit the CFoIS website. |
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17 November – Holyrood FOI Conference 2026 This year’s Holyrood Conference will take place at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh and will feature speakers from Scottish public authorities, the Scottish Information Commissioner, and the Minister for Parliamentary Business, among others. |
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5 April 2027 – First call for annual ‘proactive publication’ data From April 2027 we’ll be asking public bodies to provide us with an annual statement sharing some of the new information added to their ‘Guide to Information’ across 2026-27. We’d strongly recommend that organisations start collecting examples of relevant data now! |
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