Correspondence between Professor Alan Werrity and Scottish ministers: EIR release

Information requested

1. Copies of the agenda, briefing notes, presentations, minutes and any subsequent correspondence relating by to the meeting between Professor Alan Werrity and Scottish ministers and officials on 7 January 2020.
2. Please also confirm if there has been any correspondence between Professor Alan Werrity with Scottish Ministers and/or officials subsequent to publication of the Werrity report in December 2019 and to provide such correspondence.

Response

For 1 above, I enclose a copy of the information you requested.

Exceptions under regulation 10(4)(e) of the EIRs (internal communications) applies to some of the information you have requested because it is internal communication about press lines/ lines to take.

These exceptions are 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 these exceptions. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding these exceptions. We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate.

There is a greater public interest in allowing a private space within which officials can provide free and frank advice and views to Ministers in press lines/ lines to take. It is clearly in the public interest that Ministers can properly answer and robustly defend the Government’s policies and decisions. They need full and candid advice from officials to enable them to do so. Premature disclosure of this type of information could lead to a reduction in the comprehensiveness and frankness of such advice and views in the future, which would not be in the public interest.

For 2 above, the Scottish Government does not hold any correspondence between Professor Alan Werrity with Scottish Ministers and/or officials subsequent to publication of the Werrity report in December 2019.

Some of the information contained in some of the documents has been redacted as set out under Section 11(1) of the EIRs as it is personal information, or the information was outwith the scope of your EIR request.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

FOI - 202300344752 - Redacted Submission January 2020

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