· FOI · partially withheld
EU rules regarding university fee funding for students: FOI release
Information requested
Copies of all correspondence and details of meetings, minutes, briefing and/or agendas dated between the 1st January 2009 to the 11th December 2017 between the Scottish Government and any EU bodies regarding EU rules about university fee funding and the obligation to fund tuition fees for students from member states.
Response
I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested at Annex B of this letter. For ease of reference, I have provided a copy of the Scottish Government news release that issued at the time. An exemption under s.38(1)(b) (personal data relating to third party) applies to some of the information you have requested. The reasons why these exemptions apply are explained below.
Reasons for not providing information
An exemption under section 38(1)(b) (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.
Detected exemption language
An exemption under s.38(1)(b) (personal data relating to third party) applies to some of the information you have requested. The reasons why these exemptions apply are explained below. Reasons for not providing information An exemption under section 38(1)(b) (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.