First Minister Green Prosperity Funding claim: EIR Review

Information requested

Original request 202300376118

A copy of all correspondence within the Scottish Government on the First Minister's claim that the Labour Party have dumped their £28 billion a year green investment funding commitment between 1st May 2023 and the present day and a copy of all briefings to the First Minister, Deputy First Minister, Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy and the Minister for Energy and the Environment on the Labour Party's Green Prosperity Plan, its Climate Mission and the £28 billion a year green investment funding commitment over the same period.

Response

I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) for:

"A copy of all correspondence within the Scottish Government on the First Minister's claim that the Labour Party have dumped their £28 billion a year green investment funding commitment between 1st May 2023 and the present day and a copy of all briefings to the First Minister, Deputy First Minister, Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy and the Minister for Energy and the Environment on the Labour Party's Green Prosperity Plan, its Climate Mission and the £28 billion a year green investment funding commitment over the same period."

You requested a review of the EIR as you “believe the public interest test should fall in favour or publishing items that have been exempt under regulation 10(4)d and 10(4)e.”

I have concluded that the original decision should be confirmed, with modifications.

Following a review of the exceptions that have been applied under regulation 10(4)d (material in the course of completion), I have concluded that the information withheld was in scope of your original request but I have found that the wrong exception was applied. The information originally withheld under regulation 10(4)(d) are drafts of the letter to Sarah Boyack MSP, the final version of which was released to you. After reconsidering the documents and reapplying the public interest test, I have concluded that the exception 10(4)(e) (internal communications) should have been applied as the information requested is internal communications between Scottish Government officials.

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, there is a greater public interest in 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 the discussions will be disclosed in the near future, when it may undermine or constrain the Government’s view on that policy/issue while it is still under discussion and development.

After reconsidering the information originally withheld under regulation 10(4)(e), and reapplying the public interest test, I have taken the decision to release some of this information to you now. I have provided this information in an attachment to this email.

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.

EIR 202300382550 - Information released - Annex A

File type

9 page PDF

File size

201.6 kB