FOI/202100134969 · FOI · partially withheld
Former Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing drug deaths statistics communications: FOI release
Information requested
"All emails, letters, minutes of meetings, briefings, hand written notes, records of phone conversations and messages on encrypted phone apps between The Public Health Minister, The Cabinet Secretary for health, the First Minister and the Chair of the Drugs death task force or anyone in their private office or Ministerial office including Special Advisors relating to the drugs deaths statistics for Scotland published on the 15th December - all between 1st October 2020 and 18th December' and relating to Ministerial position of the Minister for public health at that time."
Response
Please see the information you have requested attached 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 because an exemption under section 38(1)(b) (personal information) of FOISA applies to that information.
An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (third party personal data) applies to the information requested because it is third party personal information and so it is subject to the General Data Protection Regulation and 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.
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
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because an exemption under section 38(1)(b) (personal information) of FOISA applies to that information. An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (third party personal data) applies to the information requested because it is third party personal information and so it is subject to the General Data Protection Regulation and 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.