Various questions surrounding Scottish Government antisemitism policy: FOI release

Information requested

Q1. Definition of antisemitism
Q1a. Has the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Definition of Antisemitism (‘IHRA  Definition’) been adopted by the Scottish Government? See antisemitism.uk/definition for more information about the IHRA Definition.
Q1b. If the IHRA Definition has been adopted, please provide the date that the motion to do so was approved.
Q1c. If the IHRA Definition has been adopted, was the IHRA Definition adopted in its entirety including all of the examples?
Q1d. If all of the examples were not adopted, which ones were omitted?
Q1e. If the IHRA Definition has not been adopted at all, was there a motion to adopt the IHRA Definition which was defeated, and if so on what date was it defeated?
Q1f. If the IHRA Definition has not yet been adopted, has adoption been timetabled?

Q2. Codes of Conduct
Q2a. If adopted, has the IHRA Definition been incorporated into the officers’ and employees’ code of conduct and conditions of employment?
Q2b. Who is responsible for investigating or monitoring alleged breaches of the Scottish Government's codes of conduct? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.

Q3. Complaints
Q3a. How many formal complaints of antisemitic conduct has the Scottish Government considered between 1st January  2017 and 31st December 2018 against members, officers or government employees?
Q3b. How many complaints resulted in disciplinary action?
Q3b. How many complaints resulted in no disciplinary action?

Q4. Equality, diversity & training
Q4a. Who is responsible for complying with the Scottish Government’s legal obligations in relation to equality and diversity? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.
Q4b. What training does the Scottish Government provide to its members, officers and employees specifically on antisemitism as opposed to generally against all forms of discrimination prohibited under the Equality Act 2010?
Q4c. If such specific training on antisemitism is provided, is it conducted by the Scottish Government in-house or is it outsourced to a training provider?
Q4d. If such specific training on antisemitism is outsourced, which organisation(s) provide the training?

Q5. Prevent coordinator
Q5a. Who is the Scottish Government’s Prevent Coordinator? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.

Response

I enclose some of the information you requested.
1. Definition of antisemitism
Q1a. Has the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Definition of Antisemitism (‘IHRA Definition’) been adopted by the Scottish Government? See antisemitism.uk/definition for more information about the IHRA Definition.
The Scottish Government formally adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism in June 2017.
Q1b. If the IHRA Definition has been adopted, please provide the date that the motion to do so was approved.
In a Parliamentary Statement on 13 June 2017, the then Communities and Equalities Secretary, Angela Constance, announced the adoption of the International Holocaust Memorial Trust’s working definition
of anti-Semitism as part of the Scottish Government’s plan of action to implement the recommendations made by the Independent Advisory Group on hate crime, prejudice and community cohesion.
Q1c. If the IHRA Definition has been adopted, was the IHRA Definition adopted in its entirety including all of the examples?
The Scottish Government formally adopted the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism in June 2017, including all of the examples of anti-Semitism which accompany the definition.
Q1d. If all of the examples were not adopted, which ones were omitted?
See Q1c.

Q2. Codes of Conduct
Q2a. If adopted, has the IHRA Definition been incorporated into the officers’ and employees’ code of conduct and conditions of employment?
The IHRA definition is not specifically mentioned in our codes of conduct however our standards of behaviour are clear that all staff should be treated equally irrespective of their sex, marital/civil partnership status, maternity/paternity status, age, race, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, religion or belief, working pattern, employment status, gender identity (transgender), caring responsibility, or trade union membership. The Civil Service Code underpins all our codes of conduct and sets out the core values of the Civil Service and the standard of behaviour expected of all civil servants – including behaviour outside of work and in dealings with one another. One of our core values is impartiality which states that:
we must carry out our responsibilities in a way that is fair, just and equitable and reflects the Civil Service commitment to equality and diversity; and
we must not act in a way that unjustifiably favours or discriminates against particular individuals or interests.
Q2b. Who is responsible for investigating or monitoring alleged breaches of the Scottish Government's codes of conduct? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.
Dependent on the breach there are various routes that civil servants can take to report any breaches, which could include within their management chain, the People Advice and Wellbeing Team Leader or the Nominated Officers which may include breaches of the Civil Service Code and any qualifying disclosures as fully set out in the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA).
An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (personal information) applies to the second part of the information you have requested because it is personal data of a third party, i.e. names/contact details  of individuals, and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. 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.

Q3. Complaints
Q3a. How many formal complaints of anti-Semitic conduct has the Scottish Government considered between 1st January 2017 and 31st December 2018 against members, officers or government employees?
During the period 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2018 there have been no anti-Semitic complaints received from Scottish Government employees.
Q3b. How many complaints resulted in disciplinary action?
See Q3a.
Q3b. How many complaints resulted in no disciplinary action?
See Q3a.

Q4. Equality, diversity & training
Q4a. Who is responsible for complying with the Scottish Government’s legal obligations in  relation to equality and diversity? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.
This work is led by the Diversity and Inclusion Team in People Directorate (email Diversityteam@gov.scot).
An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (personal information) applies to the second part of the information you have requested because it is personal data of a third party, i.e. names/contact details of individuals, and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the
General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. 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. 
Q4b. What training does the Scottish Government provide to its members, officers and employees specifically on antisemitism as opposed to generally against all forms of discrimination prohibited under the Equality Act 2010?
None.
All of the Executive Team of the Scottish Government and a number of senior civil servants act as equality and diversity champions. We have a race equality network to help with awareness raising and we have a Director General and a senior civil servant who are champions for Faith and Belief issues and convene sessions to ensure people of all faiths and none are given respect and a voice in our organisation.
Q4c. If such specific training on antisemitism is provided, is it conducted by the Scottish Government in-house or is it outsourced to a training provider?
See Q4b.
Q4d. If such specific training on antisemitism is outsourced, which organisation(s) provide the training?
See Q4b.

Q5. Prevent coordinator
Q5a. Who is the Scottish Government’s Prevent Coordinator? Please provide their name, job title, e-mail address and direct telephone number.
We do not have a Scottish Government Prevent Coordinator in Scotland. The work in relation to safeguarding those vulnerable to terrorism sits within the Connected Communities Division in the Local Government and Communities portfolio. The Scottish Government plays a key role in safeguarding vulnerable individuals from being drawn into terrorism through its work supporting the delivery of this strategy in Scotland. National Security, including the Counter-Terrorism Prevent programme, is reserved to the UK Government and the way we deliver the Prevent strategy in Scotland reflects our unique needs and communities.

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