FOI/202500495800 · FOI · partially withheld
Material regarding unsafe or deteriorating prison conditions: FOI release
Information requested
Internal briefings, submissions, or update notes sent to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, Minister for Victims and Community Safety, or DG Justice between Oct 1 to Nov 1, 2025, which warn about:
unsafe or deteriorating prison conditions prisons assessed as “end-of-life” major maintenance failures the impact of overcrowding on estate safety inability to modernise due to capital constraints
Response
I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested in Annex A. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested due to the following exemptions:
Section 30(b) of FOISA (free and frank provision of advice or exchange of views) applies to some this information. This exemption applies because disclosure would, or would be likely to, inhibit substantially the free and frank provision of advice or exchange of views for the purposes of deliberation. This exemption recognises the need for Ministers and officials to have a private space within which to discuss and explore options before the Scottish Government reaches a settled public view. 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 exchange views and provide full and frank advice, as part of the process of exploring and refining the Government’s position until the Government as a whole can adopt a decision that is sound and likely to be effective.
About FOI
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Detected exemption language
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested due to the following exemptions: Section 30(b) of FOISA (free and frank provision of advice or exchange of views) applies to some this information. This exemption applies because disclosure would, or would be likely to, inhibit substantially the free and frank provision of advice or exchange of views for the purposes of deliberation. This exemption recognises the need for Ministers and officials to have a private space within which to discuss and explore options before the Scottish Government reaches a settled public view. 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.