Briefing packs given to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills relating to the School Milk Scheme: FOI Review

Information requested

Original Request 202400401451

-All briefing packs given to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills relating to the School Milk Scheme.

Response

I have now completed my review of the response to your request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) for all briefing packs provided to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills relating to the school milk scheme from September 2023.

I have concluded that a different decision should be substituted.

I have carefully reviewed the application of exemptions in relation to your initial request. Following this review, I have found that a briefing document should be released, and I have enclosed it with this letter.

However, an exemption under section 30(b)(i) of FOISA (free and frank provision of advice) applies to some of the information within the document. This exemption applies because disclosure would, or would be likely to, inhibit substantially the free and frank provision of advice. This exemption recognises the need for officials to have a private space within which to provide free and frank advice to Ministers before the Scottish Government reaches a settled public view. Disclosing the content of free and frank advice will substantially inhibit the provision of such advice in the future, particularly because decisions have not been taken.

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. We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate.However, there is a greater public interest in allowing a private space within which officials can provide full and frank advice to Ministers, as part of the process of exploring and refining the Government’s plans for a future Scottish school milk scheme, for children in primary and special schools, during the lifetime of the current parliamentary term. This private thinking space is essential to enable all options to be properly considered, based on the best available advice, so that good policy decisions can be taken. Premature disclosure is likely to undermine the full and frank discussion of issues between Ministers and officials, which in turn will undermine the quality of the policy making process, which would not be in the public interest.

Moreover, an exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (personal information) applies to a small amount of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party, i.e., 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.

About FOI

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FOI 202400407535 - Information Released - Annex

File type

11 page PDF

File size

223.6 kB