Brian Nugent, Sovereignty Shetland candidate, asked, “What are the SNP hiding? They are being taken to court by the Scottish Information Commissioner who is asking them ‘to comply with the law not to break the law’”.[1]
He continued, this is the first time this has ever happened. Have the SNP been in power so long that they think they are above the law?
Does the SNP candidate side with the SNP or with the Commissioner?
The Commissioner is the independent public official, who is responsible for promoting and enforcing Scotland’s freedom of information law, independent of the Scottish Government.[2]
The FOI is into the conduct of former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon under the Ministerial Code, and associated legal advice, what is there to hide?
I have relatives who work on FOI requests for various councils. Their practice is that a valid FOI request is dealt with a carefully as possible, and also as quickly as possible to keep within legal deadlines. This is not a description of how the SNP has dealt with the FOI request in question, they have delayed over a valid FOI request, in the Commissioner’s opinion, to such an extent that they are being taken to court.
My relatives, tell me that they do not want the Commissioner on their back, so why are the SNP facing court over this FOI?
It is not a good look being the Scottish Government and being taken to court. When a government misses deadline after deadline, even after formal warning of legal action, it is no longer a question of administration. Is it a question of attitude? It is not a case of the government misunderstanding the FOI, or appealing it, but of ignoring it.
The point of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 is to ensure transparency and accountability in government actions and to allow people to ask for information on those actions.
The Act sets up procedures for people to follow if they want ask questions of Scottish public authorities.
Authorities should reply within 20 working days or explain why the information cannot be disclosed. Response times can be increased in difficult cases.
FOI is in place to stop public bodies, including the government, marking their own homework. The Commissioner said that by taking action to protect and update FOI now, we can ensure this vital right remains fit-for-purpose.
Public office comes with duties, not just authority. This SNP government seems to have decided that the rules do not apply to it, they have become too comfortable in power, resisting transparency.
Scots deserve a government that respects the law, and respects the public’s right to know.
[1] https://x.com/DvdHmltn/status/2014672807414702317
[2] https://www.foi.scot/about-us