EIR/202600514945 · FOI/EIR · not held
Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) funding connected to the Westwood Hill site: EIR release
Information requested
Information relating to Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) funding connected with the Westwood Hill site, East Kilbride, and the period for this request is 1 January 2025 to 31 May 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.
We also note that you are seeking the actual recorded documents where possible, rather than a summary, and if any information is withheld, to identify the specific exception or exemption relied upon and, where applicable, provide the public interest reasoning.
I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested in the format you asked for.
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. In this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing these requests under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. The reasons why that exception applies are explained in Annex A to this letter. We are are also unable to provide some of the information you have requested because exceptions under regulation 10(5)(e) – Confidentiality of commercial or industrial information and regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications). The reasons why those exceptions apply are again explained in Annex A to this letter.
An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some the information requested because it is personal data of a third party and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. This exception 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 exception.
1. The AHSP application, bid, claim, submission or equivalent document submitted by or on behalf of South Lanarkshire Council in relation to the Westwood Hill site.
We have identified information that falls within the scope of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004. The AHSP application can be found in Annex B, along with supporting documentation of the capital valuation (Annex C) and site map (Annex D).
A limited amount of information has been withheld as the reasons for this can be found in Annex A.
2. All appendices, schedules, covering emails, valuation material, declarations, certificates, cost breakdowns, business cases or supporting documents submitted with that application, bid or claim.
See question 1.
The Scottish Government does not hold any further information of the type requested, as the project is at an early stage.
3. Any document, statement, form, email or note showing what South Lanarkshire Council stated to the Scottish Government about:
a. ownership of the Westwood Hill land;
b. whether the council already owned the site;
c. whether the land was being transferred internally within the council;
d. whether the payment sought related to acquisition, valuation, appropriation, transfer, or another mechanism.
See question 1, 4 and question 8.
The Scottish Government does not hold further information addressing these matters. Information was provided verbally during routine programme meetings. As previously advised, the funding was for the acquisition of land.
4. Any valuation report, valuation certificate, appraisal, assessment, or other document used by the Scottish Government to assess or process the claimed amount in respect of the site.
See question 1.
In addition, we have identified information that falls within the scope of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004. The AHSP appraisal can be found in Annex E.
A limited amount of information has been withheld as the reasons for this can be found in Annex A.
5. The grant offer letter, approval notice, conditions of grant, payment authorisation, and any document recording the basis on which the £1.4 million payment was approved.
We have identified information that falls within the scope of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004. The AHSP grant offer letter can be found in Annex F.
A limited amount of information has been withheld as the reasons for this can be found in Annex A.
6. Any correspondence between the Scottish Government and South Lanarkshire Council discussing: a. ownership of the land;
b. eligibility for AHSP funding where the applicant authority already owned the land;
c. whether the site was being treated as an acquisition or valuation claim;
d. the purpose of the £1.4 million payment.
The Scottish Government does not hold any further correspondence beyond what has already been disclosed. As stated above and in response to question 3, the funding related to the acquisition of the land.
7. Any internal Scottish Government emails, briefing notes, file notes, minutes, submissions or decision records discussing:
a. what the council had stated about land ownership;
b. whether AHSP funding could be awarded in respect of land already owned by the applicant authority;
c. whether the claim was treated as acquisition, valuation, transfer, or appropriation;
d. the legal, policy or guidance basis relied upon for approving the payment.
The Scottish Government does not hold internal documents addressing these matters. Discussions took place as part of routine programme management and were not separately recorded.
8. Any record showing the dates on which:
a. the application or claim was first received;
b. it was assessed;
c. it was approved;
d. the offer was issued;
e. the offer was accepted;
f. payment was made.
While there is no single manual record, the following information is held:
Application received: 13 March 2025 Application assessed: 18 March 2025 Application approved: 18 March 2025 Offer issued: 18 March 2025 Offer accepted: 19 March 2025 Payment made: 20 March 2025 (see Annex G)
We also include a copy of the grant settlement form (Annex H).
A limited amount of information has been withheld as the reasons for this can be found in Annex A.
9. If any legal or policy advice was considered but is withheld, please provide any non-exempt record identifying the title, date, author and subject matter of that advice.
The Scottish Government does not hold any information of the type requested.
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. We also note that you are seeking the actual recorded documents where possible, rather than a summary, and if any information is withheld, to identify the specific exception or exemption relied upon and, where applicable, provide the public interest reasoning.