EIR/202500447064 Review of 202400440963 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Land Reform (Scotland) Bill correspondence: EIR Review
Information requested
Original request 202400440963
1. “All mentions of the terms “Ed Mountain”, “Edward Mountain”, “NZET Convener”, “NZET Committee Convener”, “Net Zero Convener”, “Net Zero Committee Convener”, “Net Zero, Energy and Transport Convener” and “Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee Convener” by Mairi Gougeon (or anyone in her private office), Fiona Hyslop (or anyone in her private office) or special adviser Kate Higgins in emails, letters, WhatsApps or sent since 1 September 2024. Please use the alternative spelling ‘convenor’ for each of the aforementioned terms where convener is referenced.”
2. “Please provide all correspondence between the civil servants and Scottish Ministers working on the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill and special adviser Kate Higgins since 1 September 2024. This should include all meetings that she has attended with these civil servants and the minutes of those meetings, any email, WhatsApps, letters or notes exchanged and any other form of documented correspondence between civil servants/ministers working on the Land Reform Bill and Kate Higgins since 1 September 2024.”
Response
I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) for:
1. “All mentions of the terms “Ed Mountain”, “Edward Mountain”, “NZET Convener”, “NZET Committee Convener”, “Net Zero Convener”, “Net Zero Committee Convener”, “Net Zero, Energy and Transport Convener” and “Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee Convener” by Mairi Gougeon (or anyone in her private office), Fiona Hyslop (or anyone in her private office) or special adviser Kate Higgins in emails, letters, WhatsApps or sent since 1 September 2024. Please use the alternative spelling ‘convenor’ for each of the aforementioned terms where convener is referenced.”
2. “Please provide all correspondence between the civil servants and Scottish Ministers working on the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill and special adviser Kate Higgins since 1 September 2024. This should include all meetings that she has attended with these civil servants and the minutes of those meetings, any email, WhatsApps, letters or notes exchanged and any other form of documented correspondence between civil servants/ministers working on the Land Reform Bill and Kate Higgins since 1 September 2024.”
In requesting your review, you have confirmed that you are dissatisfied with the application of regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications) to withhold information in part 2 of your request. In conducting my review, I have therefore given further consideration to the information previously withheld under this exception.
I have concluded that the original decision should be confirmed, with modifications.
I have determined that some of the information previously withheld under regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications) can now be disclosed. I have therefore enclosed a copy of this information.
I am satisfied that the information being disclosed is held within internal communications, however on reconsideration of the public interest test in relation to this information, I have found that the balance of the public interest lies in favour of disclosure. This is primarily because, as the Bill progresses through Parliament, information discussed internally becomes publicly available, or less sensitive.
I have also determined that an exemption under regulation 10(4)(e) would continue to apply to some of the information you have requested and that in relation to this information the balance of the public interest test would remain in favour of upholding the exemption for the reasons set out in our response to you on 7 January 2025. The information which remains exempt from disclosure is internal information which relates to Scottish Government policy which is currently under active development.
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Detected exemption language
This should include all meetings that she has attended with these civil servants and the minutes of those meetings, any email, WhatsApps, letters or notes exchanged and any other form of documented correspondence between civil servants/ministers working on the Land Reform Bill and Kate Higgins since 1 September 2024.” In requesting your review, you have confirmed that you are dissatisfied with the application of regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications) to withhold information in part 2 of your request. I have determined that some of the information previously withheld under regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications) can now be disclosed. I have also determined that an exemption under regulation 10(4)(e) would continue to apply to some of the information you have requested and that in relation to this information the balance of the public interest test would remain in favour of upholding the exemption for the reasons set out in our response to you on 7 January 2025.