Cost of First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture's trip to Germany for the Euros: FOI release

Information requested

How much of taxpayers money was used by John Swinney, Angus Robertson et all to go to Germany for the Euros.

Response

Three Scottish Government Ministers (First Minister, Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, and Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport) travelled to Germany, as guests of the Scottish Football Association, for the three Scotland group matches (one Minister at each game) of the UEFA European Football Championship in June 2024. The total cost of the three visits was: £24,223.70. This includes the costs of Scottish Government Officials who supported each Minister during their visit.

An exemption under section 39(1) of FOISA (health & safety) applies to some of the information you have requested. The Scottish Government does not provide information in relation to the First Minister’s security matters. This is because disclosure would, or would be likely to, endanger the physical or mental health or safety of an individual. 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 some public interest in the arrangements for the First Minister’s travel, however, this is outweighed by the public interest in the safety of the First Minister.

All visits followed the rules on Ministerial overseas visits as set out in the Scottish Ministerial Code. This can be accessed via:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-ministerial-code-2023-edition

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