FOI/202500487372 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Queries relating to the draft speech Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity regarding Urban Gull Summit: EIR release
Information requested
1. A copy of the draft speech prepared for Jim Fairlie ahead of the Ministerial Statement on 1 October 2025 on the Urban Gull Summit.
2. A copy of any briefing prepared for Jim Fairlie ahead of the Ministerial Statement on 1 October 2025 on the Urban Gull Summit.
3. A copy of any correspondence sent to or sent from Jim Fairlie ahead of the Ministerial Statement on 1 October 2025 on the Urban Gull Summit or after the statement was delivered on 1 October 2025.
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.
Question 1
I have included copies of the information you have requested below in Annex B.
Question 2
I have included copies of the information you have requested below in Annex C.
On reviewing materials within scope of your request an exception has been applied in line with the EIRs.
You can find information on the exceptions that have been applied to information below in Annex A.
Question 3
I have included copies of the information you have requested below in Annex D.
On reviewing materials within scope of your request an exception has been applied in line with the EIRs.
You can find information on the exceptions that have been applied to information below in Annex A.
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.
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.