Minutes and correspondence between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Ltd: EIR release

 

FOI reference: FOI/18/03523  
Date received: 3 December 2018
Date responded: 21 December 2018

 

 

 

This was clarified on 3 December to

 

 

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 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 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.

 

Details of any meeting minutes regarding the AWPR between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Ltd, since 1 November 2018

An exception under regulation 10(5)(e) of the EIRs (substantial prejudice to confidentiality of commercial information) applies to some of the information you have requested from a meeting held between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Limited (ARL), the project contractor. This exception applies because disclosure of this particular information would, or would be likely to, prejudice substantially the confidentiality of commercial information provided by the project contractor, Aberdeen Roads Limited and thus cause substantial harm to their commercial interests. Disclosing this information would be likely to give ARL’s competitors an advantage in future similar tendering exercises, which would substantially prejudice their ability to submit competitive tenders and so could significantly harm their commercial business.

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 a public interest in disclosing information as part of open and transparent government, and to help account for the expenditure of public money. However, there is a greater public interest in protecting the commercial interests of companies which enter into Scottish Government contracts, to ensure that we are always able to obtain the best value for public money.

I have attached the minutes of a meeting held between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Limited on 8 November. As advised above, some of the information has been redacted due to commercial sensitivities.

Details of any correspondence between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Ltd regarding the AWPR, since 1 November 2018

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), Transport Scotland is not required to provide information which it does not have. Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested as no correspondence has been sent between Michael Matheson and Aberdeen Roads Limited (ARL) since 1 November 2018.

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. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in correspondence between Michael Matheson and ARL, clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

 

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