By Lucy Ashton
A secret in West Dunbartonshire is something you tell one person at a time – and so it should be.
Today Scottish Labour has accused the SNP of presiding over a “culture of secrecy” as new figures show just a third of Scottish Government FOI responses are issued in full and on time.
Information uncovered by Scottish Labour has revealed that in 2023, the Scottish Government received 4,459 Freedom Of Information requests.
However, just 1,434 of these received a full response within the legal timescales – meaning more than 68 per cent of FOIs were either late, refused or redacted.
The SNP government’s FOI handling during the Covid pandemic has faced criticism over recent weeks and sparked a “Level 3” intervention from the Scottish Information Commissioner, who said that the evidence provided to the Inquiry “raises significant practice concerns”.
Scottish Labour has accused the SNP of presiding over a “rotten culture of secrecy and cover-up”.
Scottish Labour Deputy Leader Jackie Baillie, left, said “Once again the SNP is treating the public with contempt and attempting to stifle scrutiny.
“Time and time again we see the SNP’s disregard for transparency on display, from their woeful record on freedom of information requests to the shameful destruction of evidence during the Covid pandemic.
“Scotland deserves better than the rotten culture of secrecy and cover-up this SNP government has created.
“Scottish Labour will strengthen FOI laws and clean up Holyrood by bolstering government accountability and oversight.”
The Secret Scotland culture goes far beyond Holyrood – right to our own doorsteps here in Dumbarton where West Dunbartonshire Council refuses to speak to The Democrat or grant the usual facilities afforded to journalists covering local government.
Remarkably the decision to do this was made by a single council officer and not by a committee or the council itself.
Democrat editor Bill Heaney said: “The council is now administered by the Labour Group who refuse to overturn this questionable, ant-democratic decision which was made when the SNP were in power in Church Street.
“This has been going on for years now. I now see this as a clear attempt to damage my reputation as a bona fide journalist simply doing his job of commenting and reporting on local government in West Dunbartonshire, which I have been doing for nearly 60 years.
“They refuse to impart any information to The Democrat unless we make a Freedom of Information request and what is being reported in this article is that under the SNP Government that has become a complete and utter waste of time.
“Anyway, why are politicians allowed to express their disdain in the most explicit and colourful terms, such as Nicola Sturgeon called Boris Johnston a f****** clown, when I am banned for stating that councillors here are ignorant, inexperienced and incompetent, sentiments with which many people would agree?
“This is a scandal which has been going on for far too long and it is time Jackie Baillie’s lily livered Labour colleagues on West Dunbartonshire Council brought it to an end.”
- How many requests for information made under FOISA has the Scottish Government received between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2023 – 4459
- Of those requests, how many received a full response within the 20 working day limit as set out in FOISA? 1434
We (the Scottish Labour Party) have interpreted this ask as querying how many cases received in this period both met their deadline and received a full response, with no exemptions or redactions (sections deleted or blacked out) applied.
Those requests that met their deadline but did not release all information requested have not been included in this figure.
At least 110 Cases received in 2023 had yet to meet their 20 day working deadline as of the date of receipt of this FOI.
The Scottish Information Commissioner launched an intervention as a result of the evidence and statements made during Module 2A of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry: https://www.itspublicknowledge.info/commissioner-launches-new-intervention
The investigation into the government is at “level three” – the second most severe ranking:
Top of page: Democrat editor Bill Heaney receiving an an award for journalistic excellence from Lord Kinnock at a ceremony in London.
Journalistic excellence awarded by Lord Kinnock doesn’t impress Cllr Pollock who used to do coffees at the station.
Ah well, I suppose I’ll have to live with that.
I doubt that the Nobel Prize would impress the Council in Dumbarton but then I would wonder if they know what it is.