Deputy First Minister's meeting with Sanjeev Gupta: FOI release

FOI reference: FOI/17/01865
Date received: 9 August 2017
Date responded: 6 September 2017

Information requested

You asked for information relating to the Deputy First Minister's meeting with Sanjeev Gupta (Liberty House) on December 18, 2016:

1. A list of who was in attendance at the ministerial engagement
2. Where the meeting/dinner took place
3. The cost of the dinner and who paid for it
4. All briefing papers prepared for the meeting
5. All communications (emails, letters etc.) regarding the organisation of the meeting and after the engagement
6. Any notes, minutes or action points taken following the meeting.

Response

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 below.

1. The attendee list was: Sanjeev Gupta (GFG Alliance, Executive Chairman), Nicola Gupta (Mr Gupta's wife accompanied by family members, Note 1), Jay Hambro (GFG Alliance, Chief Investment Officer and Strategic Board Member and CEO SIMEC), Alex Hambro (Mr Hambro's wife), Douglas Dawson (GFG Alliance, Strategic Board Member and CEO, Liberty Industries Group), Alok Agarwal (GFG Alliance, Central Services Chief Operating Officer), Anjali Agarwal (Mr Agarwal's wife), Ravi Trehan (GFG Alliance, Strategic Board Member), Paul Francis (GFG Alliance, Strategic Board Member and CEO, Liberty Commodities Group), Derek O'Reilly (GFG Alliance, UK Industries CFO), Gianpiero Repole (GFG Alliance, Business Development UK), Mel Wilde (Liberty House, Business Development Director), Dhimant Trevedi (CEO of Bank of Baroda), Brian King (Rio Tinto Alcan, Managing Director Lochaber Smelter), John Swinney (Scottish Government, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills), Fergus Ewing (Scottish Government, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Connectivity), Dr Fiona Pearsall (partner of Mr Ewing and accompanied by their daughter), Dermot Rhatigan (Scottish Government).

Note 1: Mr and Mrs Gupta were joined by their children at the dinner. The Scottish Government does not hold the names of the Gupta children who were present.

2. The dinner was held at the Isle of Eriska Hotel, Benderloch, Oban, PA37 1SD.

3. The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested as the Scottish Government did not pay for it.

4. The briefing paper prepared for the dinner is attached below.

5. The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested.

6. The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested. The dinner on 18 December was an informal event designed to mark the occasion of the conclusion of the purchase by the GFG Alliance of the Lochaber business assets of Rio Tinto and, as such, no notes, minutes or action points were recorded.

Reasons for not providing information

The Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have asked for. An explanation for each item is provided below:

1. A list of who was in attendance at the ministerial engagement

This information has been provided.

2. Where the meeting/dinner took place.

This information has been provided.

3. The cost of the dinner and who paid for it.

This information is not held by the Scottish Government as the Scottish Government did not pay for it.

4. All briefing papers prepared for the meeting.

This information has been provided.

5. All communications (emails, letters etc.) regarding the organisation of the meeting and after the engagement.

The information you are looking for was routinely destroyed, in accordance with our standard records management practice, before the date of your request.

6. Any notes, minutes or action points taken following the meeting.

Notes, minutes or action points were not taken due to the nature of the event, which was an informal dinner to mark the sale from Rio Tinto to the GFG Alliance of the company's Lochaber business.

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

FOI-17-01865-GFG Alliance Dinner - Briefing Pack -18.12.16.pdf

File type

6 page PDF

File size

319.2 kB