Stage 1 deadline for the Scottish Employment Injuries Advisory Council Bill: FOI release

Information requested

Under FOISA, I am looking for internal communications dated since 1 December 2023, including messages and briefings notes to managers and Ministers, or between officials, including to or from the Minister for Parliamentary Business, relating to the timetabling of the deadline of stage 1 of the Scottish Employment Injuries Advisory Council Bill.

Response

I enclose a copy of the relevant information we hold for your request.

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 exemptions of FOISA applies to that information:

• Section 30(b)(i) - Free and frank provision of advice
• Section 38(1)(b) - Personal data relating to a third party
• Section 27 (1) - Information intended for future publication

The reasons these exemptions apply are set out below.

An exemption applies under Section 30(b)(i) - Free and frank provision of advice

An exemption under Section 30(b)(i) (substantial inhibition to free and frank provision of advice) of FOISA applies to some of the information requested. 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 these exemptions. We recognised that there is some public interest in releasing this information however, there is a need for Ministers and officials to have a private space to seek advice, exchange views and discuss options before reaching a settled public view. Disclosing the content of such advice and discussions would substantially inhibit the free and frank provision of advice and exchange of views in the future. We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing this information 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 Scottish Ministers, special advisers and the Permanent Secretary are covered by the terms of the Lobbying (Scotland) Act 2016. See www.lobbying.scot St Andrew's House, Regent Road, Edinburgh EH1 3DG www.gov.scot be affected by their assessment of whether discussions 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 discussion and development.

An exemption applies under Section 38(1)(b) - Personal data relating to a third party

An exemption under Section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (personal information) applies to some of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party, i.e. the names and 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.

An exemption applies under Section 27 (1) - Information intended for future publication

An exemption under Section 27 (1) of FOISA applies to some of the information requested. This exemption means that information that will be made public within 12 weeks of this request is redacted. 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 this exemption as the Bureau/Parliament will make this information public shortly.

The process for setting a Stage 1 deadline for Members’ Bills

As the setting of a deadline for Members’ Bills is led by the Scottish Parliament rather than the Scottish Government, you may wish to contact the Parliament who may be able to help you further. A Freedom of Information request can be made to the Parliament online at FoI request form | Scottish Parliament Website. Alternatively, you can email the Parliament's FOI Officer (foi.officer@parliament.scot).

However, it may be helpful to explain the process for setting a Stage 1 deadline for Members’ Bills. The lead clerk of the appropriate committee will propose a suitable Stage 1 deadline and will discuss that with the Parliament’s Non-Government Bills Unit (NGBU) for NGBU-supported Bills, or with the Member in Charge of the Bill directly if it is not a NGBU-supported Bill.

It is then for the Member in Charge, in consultation with NGBU where relevant, to decide whether to engage with the lead committee clerks on the proposed deadline. The lead committee clerk can inform the Minister for Parliamentary Business’ Private Office of the proposed deadline in order to understand if there are scheduling issues which it would be helpful to consider when formally proposing a deadline.

A clerk for the lead committee will then propose a deadline to the Committee for its agreement, before contacting the Parliament’s Business Team so that the proposed date can be put to the parliamentary Bureau for consideration. Parliament will then be asked to agree this deadline on the Bureau’s recommendation.

It is worth noting that as part of this process, committee might wish for there to be no deadline set in advance in order to take account of existing and upcoming committee workloads. Should a Member in Charge be unhappy with any proposed Stage 1 deadline, or if no deadline is proposed by the lead committee at all, the Member can speak directly to their party’s Business Manager. In the absence of a Stage 1 deadline being proposed, the Member in Charge can also write to the lead committee asking for a deadline to be established.

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 202400395435 - Information Released - Annex

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