EIR/202500479980 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Stobo Hope Woodland Creation Scheme: EIR release
Information requested
I would like to make a FOI/EIR request, in relation to the Stobo Hope Woodland Creation Scheme 23 FGS74574:
Please could Scottish Forestry provide all correspondence between Scottish Forestry and all third parties (including RPID and other government departments), as well as internal communication between Scottish Forestry staff, including documents, emails, forms, maps, ecology surveys and any other items of information since 20 January 2025 up to the present day.
Does Scottish Forestry have a date or timetable for when it envisages that the Environmental Impact Assessment for Stobo will be completed, and if so, when is this?
Secondly, I note that Scottish Forestry have now started to publish current screening opinions on its website, after intentionally breaking the law under The Forestry (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 through refusing to publish these screening decisions. Scottish Forestry publishes hundreds of documents on its 'publications' website, and could have included each screening opinion, but deliberately failed to do so (and continues to do so for historic screening decisions).
It appears Scottish Forestry is continuing to deliberately conceal large volumes of information from the public by failing to publish information such as consultee responses, ecology reports and other important documents. This appears to be part of a long-running strategy by Scottish Forestry to deliberately disadvantage communities, misuse public funds and promote vested interests in certain types of forestry and tax avoidance schemes, predicated upon environmental destruction, loss of rural employment and other negative outcomes.
Does Scottish Forestry intend to publish more information in respect of proposed woodland creation schemes in addition to the actual screening decision, and if so, what information does it propose to publish, and what is the timescale for releasing this information?
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 into account all the circumstances of this case, we have considered whether 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.
Please could Scottish Forestry provide all correspondence between Scottish Forestry and all third parties (including RPID and other government departments), as well as internal communication between Scottish Forestry staff, including documents, emails, forms, maps, ecology surveys and any other items of information since 20 January 2025 up to the present day.
Given the volume of documents included in this response, copies of the information we hold in relation to your request will be emailed to you separately because of the size and number of files. I have organised the documents into packs following the folder structure where the information was transferred. However, the number of documents remains substantial, and I appreciate your patience while receiving them.
While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance, we are unable to provide some of the information you requested because an exception under Regulation 11 (2) of the EIRs (personal data relating to a third party) applies, as does an exception under Regulation 11 (1) of the EIRs (personal data of the applicant). These are absolute exceptions, and neither is subject to the public interest test. You will be able to identify where the personal data has been redacted in the documents released.
In this case, we were also unable to provide some of the documents you requested because an exception under Regulation 10 (4) (e) of the EIRs (internal communication) applies to some of the information you have requested, as it is internal legal advice and disclosure would breach legal professional privilege. This exception is subject to the ‘public interest test’, and we have a statutory obligation to apply it. Therefore, considering all the circumstances of this case, we have evaluated whether the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in maintaining the exception. We have concluded that, on balance, the public interest supports upholding the exception. Although we recognise there may be a public interest in releasing all the information, this is outweighed by the strong public interest in protecting the confidentiality of communications between legal advisors and clients, to ensure that Scottish Ministers and officials can receive legal advice in confidence, just like any other public or private organisation.
In this case, we were also unable to provide some of the documents you requested because an exception under Regulation 10 (4) (e) of the EIRs (internal communication) applies to some of the information you have requested, as it concerns internal communications between the Scottish Ministers and officials and ministerial decisions, including how these decisions were reached. This exception is subject to a 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 exception. We recognise that there is some public interest in releasing information as part of open, transparent, and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, there is a greater public interest in allowing the Scottish Ministers a private space within which options can be properly explored and considered, and well-informed, evidence-based, good decisions can be made. Premature disclosure is likely to undermine the full and frank discussion of issues between the Ministers and Scottish Forestry’s officials, which in turn undermines the quality and objectivity of the decision-making processes at the Ministerial level.
Some of the information you requested was withheld, specifically some of the confidential commercial information related to information supplied as part of tendering or procurement processes carried out by the applicant when obtaining required surveys. Regulation 10 (5) (e) allows authorities to withhold information when disclosure would, or would likely to, substantially prejudice the confidentiality of commercial and industrial information where such confidentiality is provided for by law to protect a legitimate economic interest.
An exception under 10 (5) (c) of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (the EIRs) applies to one document sent to the Scottish Forestry by a third party that commissioned it. This exception allows a Scottish public authority to withhold environmental information if its disclosure would, or would be likely to, cause substantial prejudice to intellectual property rights such as copyright. I have decided to uphold this exception, as explained in detail in Annex A of this response below.
Please refer to Annex A below for the reasons these exceptions apply.
Some of the information you requested, particularly the variations of Enforcement Notice, is in the public domain. Under the Scottish Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs), information in the public domain is the information held by Scottish public authorities, in this case, Scottish Forestry, that is made available to the public, either because it is actively disseminated by the authority or provided to the requester upon request. When information is publicly accessible, public bodies have a duty to direct you to where it can be found online rather than providing the information directly.
The Enforcement Notice, its variations, and the Statement of Reasons can be accessed on the Scottish Forestry website at:
https://www.forestry.gov.scot/support-regulations/environmental-impactassessment/eia-projects/past-environmental-impact-assessment-consultations and at: Stobo Estate - Enforcement Notice Variation - 23 March
2025 You can also view it here:
Stobo Enforcement Notice
You may wish to stay updated with the Scottish Forestry page for any changes to the Enforcement Notice. If necessary, further enforcement notices, which may vary the original one and include all relevant maps and documents, will be updated and published on the Scottish Forestry website in due course.
The Scottish Government publishes all the Scottish Forestry’s FOI and EIR responses on their website, which may also be of interest to you. The latest Enforcement Notice variation was also released as part of a recent EIR request and published on the Scottish Government’s website. These can be found by browsing responses categorised by type of request, topic, keywords, and other criteria. You can alsorefine your search by specifying a time frame, as shown at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/
The draft documents of the variations of the Enforcement Notice were withheld as part of internal communications due to internal legal advice privilege and litigation privilege, as their disclosure would breach legal professional privilege. The final versions of all the variations are accessible online.
Does Scottish Forestry have a date or timetable for when it envisages that the Environmental Impact Assessment for Stobo will be completed, and if so, when is this?
There is no timetable has been set for the completion of the Environmental Impact Assessment at Stobo. Currently, the project is, at the scoping stage, and we are awaiting the Scoping Report from the applicant.
You might be interested in the Scottish Forestry’s EIA Guidance, which provides step-by-step information on EIA processes, available at: a2-environmental-impact-assessments-for-forestry-projectsguidance.pdf
Secondly, I note that Scottish Forestry have now started to publish current screening opinions on its website, after intentionally breaking the law under the (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 through refusing to publish these screening decisions. Scottish Forestry publishes hundreds of documents on its 'publications' website, and could have included each screening opinion, but deliberately failed to do so (and continues to do so for historic screening decisions). It appears Scottish Forestry is continuing to deliberately conceal large volumes of information from the public by failing to publish information such as consultee responses, ecology reports and other important documents. This appears to be part of a long-running strategy by Scottish Forestry to deliberately disadvantage communities, misuse public funds and promote vested interests in certain types of forestry and tax avoidance schemes, predicated upon environmental destruction, loss of rural employment and other negative outcomes. Does Scottish Forestry intend to publish more information in respect of proposed woodland creation schemes in addition to the actual screening decision, and if so, what information does it propose to publish, and what is the timescale for releasing this information?
I can confirm that this part of your EIR request was classified as a complaint and handled separately as Complaint Stage 2. I have seen the response to this complaint, which was sent to you on 8 September by Woodland Creation and Case Support Manager.
Nonetheless, I want to reassure you that Scottish Forestry continues to improve operational processes, including how we disseminate information and engage with members of the public and local communities. As you are aware, Scottish Forestry began publishing all screening decisions from 25 June. The new Scottish Forestry website will be launched later this month and will offer an improved user experience. Scottish Forestry is also updating the woodland creation application process for FGSfunded woodland creation cases. This change will align with the “Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement” on stakeholder engagement and requires applicants to share relevant project information and documentation with stakeholders during the due diligence phase over an established period. This aims to ensure stakeholders have sufficient information and time to develop responses and provide feedback on the woodland creation proposals. At this stage, we are unable to provide details on document types and timeframes, as some aspects of these changes require further consideration.
However, the changes are scheduled to take effect in 2026.
*Due to the size of the files we are unable to upload the documents referred to above. If you wish to consider, please contact us at the address below and we will be happy to provide.
ANNEX A
REASONS FOR NOT PROVIDING INFORMATION
Personal data relating to the applicant
An exception under regulation 11(1) of the EIRs (personal information of the applicant) applies to some of the requested information because it is your personal data and is therefore exempt from release. Please note that FOI/EIR disclosures are public information, and withholding your personal data is intended to protect you in the same way that withholding personal data of third parties (see below) is intended to protect them. This exception is not subject to the ‘public interest test’, so we are not required to consider whether the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception.
Personal data relating to a third party
An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (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 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 whether the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception.
Internal communication in relation to internal legal advice
An exception under Regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications in relation to internal legal advice and litigation) applies to some of the information you have requested because it is internal legal advice, and disclosure would breach legal professional privilege. This exception is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking into account all the circumstances of this case, we have considered whether the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, this is outweighed by the strong public interest in preserving the right to confidentiality of communications between legal advisers and clients, ensuring that Ministers and officials can receive legal advice in confidence, just like any other public or private organisation.
Internal communication in relation to Ministerial advice and decision-making
An exception under Regulation 10 (4) )(e) of the EIRs (internal communications) applies to some of the information you have requested because it is communication between Scottish Government Ministers and/or officials concerning ministerial advice and decision-making. This exception 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 exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. We recognise that there is some public interest in the release of information as part of open, transparent, and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, there is a greater public interest in high-quality, evidence-based, unbiased decision-making, and its implications. This means that Ministers and officials need to be able to consider all available options and to debate them rigorously, to fully understand their implications.
Intellectual property (IP) rights and copyright
An exception under Regulation 10 (5) (c) of the EIRs (intellectual property rights, including copyright) applies to some of the information you requested. This exception allows a Scottish public authority to withhold environmental information if its disclosure would, or would be likely to, cause substantial prejudice to intellectual property rights such as copyright. When engaging the exception, I had clear evidence that the information falls within the class listed in regulation 10 (5) (c) as intellectual property. This exception is subject to the public interest test, and we have a statutory obligation to apply it. Under regulation 10 (5) (c), I assumed disclosure when applying the exception and weighed the public interest in either maintaining or disclosing the information. Although we recognise there may be public interest in releasing all the information, I have concluded that, on balance, the public interest supports upholding the exception, as disclosing this specific type of information would have an adverse effect by breaching copyright laws.
Confidentiality of commercial information
An exception under regulation 10(5)(e) of the EIRs (commercial confidentiality) applies to some of the requested information because it relates to information supplied by the applicant, such as commercially sensitive costings. The information was supplied to the applicant by contractors conducting the required ecological and other surveys required by Scottish Forestry as a regulator. Disclosure of this information would, or would likely to cause, substantial harm to the legitimate economic interests of the applicant, as well as others required by Scottish Forestry to commission surveys, reports and collect data. This exception is subject to the public interest test, and we have a statutory obligation to apply it. Under regulation 10 (5) (e), I assumed disclosure when applying the exception and weighed the public interest in either maintaining or disclosing the information. Although we recognise there may be public interest in releasing all the information, I have concluded that, on balance, the public interest supports upholding the exception, as disclosing this specific type of information would have an adverse effect not only on the economic interest of the applicant but also on others who commission and procure surveys when applying for forestry grants. Having a range of surveying organisations and procurement options is in the public interest.
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.
Contact Please quote the FOI reference Central Correspondence Unit Email: contactus@gov.scot Phone: 0300 244 4000 The Scottish Government St Andrew's House Regent Road Edinburgh EH1 3DG
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 into account all the circumstances of this case, we have considered whether 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. In this case, we were also unable to provide some of the documents you requested because an exception under Regulation 10 (4) (e) of the EIRs (internal communication) applies to some of the information you have requested, as it is internal legal advice and disclosure would breach legal professional privilege.
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