Publication - FOI/EIR release

Protocols for Royal Banner, Saltire and Union Flags: FOI release

Published: 27 February 2018
Directorate: Constitution Directorate
Topic: Constitution and democracy, Public sector

Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

FOI reference: FOI/18/00263
Date received: 25 January 2018
Date responded: 26 February 2018

Information requested

All emails by and to staff and senior officials of the "Protocol and Honours Team" from November and December 2017, and January 2018 up to the end of Friday 26th of January which relates to the following:

Flag flying protocols. The Saltire Flag. The Union Flag. The Royal Banner (Lion Rampant).

This should include every email by and to members of the "Protocol and Honours Team" that mentions any of the above listed flags or relates to flag flying protocols over the 3 months mentioned.

Response

I enclose a copy of the information you requested. You will see that personal data have been redacted. This is because an exemption under section 38 (1) (b) of FOISA (personal information) applies. Disclosing personal information would contravene data protection principles in schedule 1 to the Data Protection Act 1998.

This exemption is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption.

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