Cleaner fish welfare with respect to salmon farms: EIR release

Information requested

You referred to previous communication with the Marine Directorate and asked a number of questions requesting information relating to cleaner fish welfare with respect to salmon farms. The specifics of your request are detailed below within the section ‘response to your request’.

Response

As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

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, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

Your request had four specific areas which are detailed below, along with our response to each:

1. Between 1 January 2020 and present day, on how many occasions has the FHI [Fish Health Inspectorate] or MD [Marine Directorate] liaised with APHA [Animal Plant Health Agency], or referred cases to APHA, in relation to welfare concerns about cleaner fish on fish farms? 

We do not have a comprehensive record of the number of occasions that the FHI or MD have liaised with APHA, or referred cases to APHA in relation to welfare concerns about cleaner fish on fish farms. This is because many communications have been undertaken by telephone and we do not have a record of the same. In general terms, the various issues relating to cleaner fish welfare have been shared with APHA by either telephone or email communication. Relevant email communications are provided under part 3 of your request below. 

2. In relation to which of the attached extracts [you provided a number of extracts from published FHI case information] from FHI investigation reports did FHI/MD consult with or refer to APHA?

As explained above, we do not have a comprehensive record of this information. Where written communications are provided in relation to part 3 then clearly this represents a situation where we can confirm, through the records held, that the particular information was passed on. 

3. Copy correspondence exchange with APHA re I & ii above.

Please find attached copies of the communications – redactions applied in relation to personal information. Information within these communications which is out with the scope of your request has also been redacted/removed. 

4. For the same time period, copy of minuted discussions between senior MD/FHI officials with government ministers about cleaner fish welfare on fish farms in Scotland.

We hold no records relating to discussions between senior MD/FHI officials with government ministers about cleaner fish welfare on fish farms in Scotland. Please note that we have interpreted this part of your request, with respect to ‘senior MD officials’, to relate to Deputy Director level and have considered it within the appropriate business area of MD. You may also wish to be aware that, in general terms, FHI officials do not liaise directly with Government Ministers and have not done so on the subject area of cleaner fish welfare on fish farms in Scotland.

Exceptions apply

Regulation 10(4)(a) – information not held

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing aspects of your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. 

Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), the Scottish Government is not required to provide information which it does not have. The Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested, with respect to parts 1, 2 and 4 of your request, as detailed above.

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. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about cleaner fish welfare and the various aspects of your request above, clearly, we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

Regulation 11(2) – personal information

An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party 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 exception 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 exception.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

EIR 202400444416 - Information released - Annex

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