FOI/202300368462 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Home Energy Scotland grant and loan scheme: EIR release
Information requested
You asked for the following information relating to the Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan Scheme: 1. How many (a) grants, and (b) loans have been awarded in each local authority in each year since the start of the scheme? 2. What is the total sum of (a) grants, and (b) loans awarded in each local authority in each year since the start of the scheme? 3. How many of each home renewable system have been installed in each local authority in each year since the start of the scheme - with specific attention to heat pumps?
Response
As the information you have requested id '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. The information you have requested for the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme is detailed in the attachment. Data covers the period from launch of the scheme in December 2022 to the end of June 2023. About FOI
The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.
Detected exemption language
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.