· FOI · partially withheld
Details of any reports of racism 2015-2018: FOI release
Information requested
Details of any reports of racism in the Scottish Government for each of the last three years, 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 so far.
Response
You have requested information for Scottish Government staff. Our response therefore covers staff who are subject to Scottish Government Main and Scottish Government Marine terms and conditions of employment and Senior Civil Servants in the organisations listed in Annex A.
The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring our workplaces are free from all forms of discrimination or harassment, where all colleagues are valued and treated with respect and dignity. We have set an equality outcome to foster an inclusive workplace culture which values the contribution of employees from all backgrounds and our Race Equality Network, along with other staff networks, is at the heart of this work. We have robust policies and procedures in place to deal with instances where behaviour falls below the standard expected.
While our aim is to provide information wherever possible, I am unable to provide the information you have requested. An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (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 Schedule 1 to the Data Protection Act 1998. 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.
People Directorate records about reports of racism in the Scottish Government for each of the last three years, 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 so far is as follows. Given the small number of cases we are unable to give the exact number.
In 2015-16 there were fewer than 5 reports of racism.
In 2016-17 there were fewer than 5 reports of racism.
In 2018-18 there were fewer than 5 reports of racism.
Detected exemption language
An exemption under section 38(1)(b) of FOISA (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 Schedule 1 to the Data Protection Act 1998. 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.