Correspondence regarding A96 dualling project: EIR release

Information requested

Please treat this email as an FOI request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. The information requested is detailed in the numbered list at Section "C) Information Requested". My questions, in Section C, follow sections "A) Clarifications" and a description of a document I believe is held and forms part of this request , Section "B) Report referred to in prior disclosures". 

Sections A and B are not requests for information, but are intended to clarify Section "C) Information Requested". I believe these should restrict the scope of information requested in Section C. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance in relation to this request.

A) Clarifications
On points 1-6, I am not asking about the STPR2 or any associated technical notes - unless they make direct and specific mention to reviewing the A96 dualling project. Please do not send me any documents from STPR2 or STPR2 technical notes unless they specifically include the term "A96" in response to my points 1-3. Otherwise, they will not be relevant to my request. Also, in terms of below-listed points 4-6, these requests for correspondence are virtually identical to FOI 202200305664, in response to which significant correspondence was disclosed. In your response to this request, I would appreciate an explanation of how my request differs from that prior disclosure - if the extent of information supplied differs from that prior request. Further - parts 4-6 are not solely limited to any particular project or document, but require only a search for search terms within correspondence which should, I hope, further the reduce the scope and work involved in fulfilling my request. Please do not limit your response to my request to a specific project or projects, or exclude any particular projects, I am happy with a simple search of correspondence.

B) Report referred to in prior disclosures Within prior disclosure FOI - 202200305664 - Annex B, titled: "Extract from briefing sent to the Minister for Transport dated 18 January 2022 in respect of the A96 Corridor Review" there is a table described as setting out: "indicative timescales associated with the review". The first record in that table refers to a: "Report on the basis for the A96 Review, referring to the updated Government policy that will inform the review and the overall approach proposed, and the policy context of the STPR2." The completion date provided in this table is: "January 2021". As the date provided is a year prior to the January 2022 email containing the table, I assume this is a record of the date the report was completed/released, rather than an expected completion date. I assume this on the basis that one would not include a completion date a year in the past for a yet-unfinished project without clarifying this was the case.

I expect that this document exists, is held and can be released.

C) INFORMATION REQUESTED

1) Could you please confirm that the report mentioned above ("on the basis for the A96 Review") exists?

2) Could you please confirm whether the report mentioned above ("on the basis for the A96 Review") is held?

3) Could you please release the report mentioned above ("on the basis for the A96 Review"), including all appendixes, supplementary documents and associated correspondence?

4) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, sent to or from the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity/Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition referring to "review" in relation to the A96 and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021?

5) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, sent to or from the Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands/Minister for Transport, in which there is reference to "review" in relation to the A96 and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021?

6) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, issued from Transport Scotland officials when the original correspondence was sent to the Minister for Transport and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition, in which there is reference to "review" in relation to the A96 and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021.

Response

As all of the information you have requested is ‘environmental information’ for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

We sent an email on 20 September 2023 requesting clarification. Following our receipt of your clarification on 20 September 2023, it was confirmed that your request is specific to:

“Thank you so much for your prompt response and clarification on this matter. I appreciate it and what you have said definitely clears up some points within my request. There is no need to respond to my points 1, 2 and 3. However, I would still be grateful for the release of information requested within my points 4, 5 and 6, to which I will make a small clarification on the basis of the update you have provided: I am happy to remove the reference to the term "report" within my initial requests.

For your convenience, I have left my clarified points 4-6 below, along with my initial note from section A specifically concerning these aspects of my request. Please let me know if I can be of any further help.

Clarificatory note on points 4-6
In terms of below-listed points 4-6, these requests for correspondence are virtually identical to FOI 202200305664, in response to which significant correspondence was disclosed. In your response to this request, I would appreciate an explanation of how my request differs from that prior disclosure - if the extent of information supplied differs from that prior request. Further - parts 4-6 are not solely limited to any particular project or document, but require only a search for search terms within correspondence which should, I hope, further the reduce the scope and work involved in fulfilling my request. Please do not limit your response to my request to a specific project or projects, or exclude any particular projects, I am happy with a simple search of correspondence and associated attachments and briefings.

(Clarified) Information requested

4) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, sent to or from the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity/Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition relating to the A96 dualling project and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021?

5) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, sent to or from the Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands/Minister for Transport, relating to the A96 dualling project and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021?

6) Could you please provide copies of all correspondence, attachments and briefings, issued from Transport Scotland officials when the original correspondence was sent to the Minister for Transport and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition, relating to the A96 dualling project and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021.” 

Please find below response to your request for information you made in your email.

In response to your request above, please refer to Annex A which contains extracts from correspondence, attachments and briefings, sent to or from the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity/Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition, Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands/Minister for Transport relating to the A96
dualling project and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021.

Please refer to Annex B which contains extracts of copies of all correspondence issued from Transport Scotland officials when the original correspondence was sent to the Minister for Transport and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity and/or Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition, relating to the A96 dualling project and/or "UK Infrastructure Strategy" and/or "National Infrastructure Strategy" between July 2020 and August 2021.

An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party 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 exception 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 exception. This exception has been applied to Annexes A and B contained within this response.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because an exception under regulation 10(4)(e) of the EIRs (internal communications) applies to some of the information because it is internal communication between Scottish Government/Transport Scotland and Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity about the A96 dualling programme. This exception has been applied to Annex A contained within this response. The reasons why that exception applies are explained below.

This exception is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. We recognise that there is some public interest in release as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, this is outweighed by the public interest in maintaining high quality policy and decision-making, and in the properly considered implementation and development of policies and decisions. This means that Ministers and officials need to be able to consider all available options and to debate those rigorously, to fully understand their possible implications.

Their candour in doing so will be affected by their assessment of whether discussions on the A96 Dualling programme will be disclosed in the near future, when it may undermine or constrain the Government’s view on that policy while it is still under development. The information requested is internal communication regarding development of government policy and if released would otherwise impact on effective conduct of public affairs. Under regulation 6(1)(b) of the EIRs, we do not have to give you information which is already publicly available and easily accessible to you in another form or format. We have applied this regulation to Annex B from the period from July 2020 to August 2021.

This information has been released under Freedom of Information which can be accessed via the Scottish Government’s website online at; https://www.gov.scot/publications/. Please see list below of relevant reference numbers:

FOI 202200324323
FOI 202100154186
FOI 202100157108
FOI 202100216548
FOI 202100245258
FOI 202100251442
FOI 202200270239

Due to the size of the files we are unable to upload the documents referred to above. If you wish to consider, please contact us at the address below and we will be happy to provide.

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