Disregards in accordance with the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) (Scotland) Act 2018: FOI release

Information requested

1. The total number of pardons issued to date under the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) (Scotland) Act 2018;

2. Annual breakdown of the number of pardons issued, from the commencement of the Act to the present;

3. The number of applications received for pardons each year, along with the most common reasons for rejection;

4. The number of applications that have been rejected each year, along with the most common reasons for rejection;

5. Demographic information of applicants (age, gender, etc.) if available, while ensuring compliance with privacy and data protection laws; and 

6. Any available information on the time taken to process applications, including the average processing time and the range of processing times.

Response

Below is a response to some of the information you requested.

Exemptions under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA applies to some of the information you have requested. I have interpreted your references to ‘pardons’ as meaning the ‘disregarding’ of a conviction under Part 3 of the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) (Scotland) Act 2018 so that it does not appear on a person’s criminal record. This is because the pardon provided for by Part 2 of that Act is automatic and symbolic, and does not require the convicted person to make an application.

1. The total number of pardons issued to date under the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) (Scotland) Act 2018;     

To date, 12 disregards have been issued under the Historical Sexual Offences (Pardons and Disregards) (Scotland) Act 2018.

2. Annual breakdown of the number of pardons issued, from the commencement of the Act to the present;

We have withheld the precise number of disregards issued each year because where a request asks for the number of individuals and that number is so small, that release of the information could lead to the identification of the individuals. This information is therefore exempt under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA. Disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the UK 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.

3. The number of applications received for pardons each year, along with the most common reasons for rejection;

We have withheld the precise number of disregards issued because the request asks for a number of individuals, and that number is so small that release of the information could lead to the identification of these individuals. This information is therefore exempt under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA. Disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the UK 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.

4. The number of applications that have been rejected each year, along with the most common reasons for rejection;

We have withheld the precise number of disregards issued because the request asks for a number of individuals, and that number is so small that release of the information could lead to the identification of these individuals. This information is therefore exempt under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA. Disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the UK 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. However, I can advise that the most common reasons for rejection of an application include having no record of any relevant conviction, the conviction relating to an offence not covered by the Act, and application abandoned by applicant.

5. Demographic information of applicants (age, gender, etc.) if available, while ensuring compliance with privacy and data protection laws;

We have withheld the demographic information of applicants because when applicants provide their demographic information they do so under Scottish Government guidance that the information will only be used to progress their application. This information is therefore being exempt under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA. Disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the UK 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.

6. Any available information on the time taken to process applications, including the average processing time and the range of processing times.

Of 17 applications, one is yet to be determined, and one application was withdrawn by the applicant.

Of the remaining 15 applications:
1 took less than one month to assess (rounded to 1 for simpler averages);
4 took 2 months to assess;
3 took 3 months to assess;
2 took 4 months to assess;
1 took 7 months to assess;
1 took 8 months to assess;
1 took 9 months to assess;
1 took 11 months to assess;
1 took 14 months to assess.
This means that the median time it has taken to assess the relevant applications was 3 months.

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