Publication - FOI/EIR release

Correspondence regarding Project Corridor Options A83: EIR release

Published: 23 February 2021
Part of: Public sector, Transport
FOI reference: FOI/202000089686
Date received: 22 September 2020
Date responded: 24 November 2020

Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004

Information requested

A record of all of the discussions, minutes, emails and the like which led to the 11 options identified by Transport Scotland for the A83 as noted here: Project Corridor Options - Access to Argyll and Bute (A83) (transport.gov.scot)

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 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.

In response to your request I attach a copy of some of the information held by Transport Scotland.

Annex A – Document - Strategic Transport Projects Review – Stakeholder Engagement ‘Option Generation’ Workshop Invitation – 4 November 2019
Annex B – Collated list of transport interventions for Argyll & Bute from STPR2 Consultation and Online Survey
Annex C – Documentation – A83 Task Force – A83 Appraisal Briefing Paper by Jacobs Aecom for STPR2 – 27 August 2020

Working documents are shown at the following attached appendices:

Appendix 1 - STPR Argyll & Bute Options Workshop Slides
Appendix 2 - A83 Argyll and Bute Region 11 Options for Rest & Be Thankful

Previously published information can be found here:
https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/13531/a83-rest-and-be-thankful-project-a83-trunk-road-route-study-summary-part-a-final.pdf

REASONS FOR NOT PROVIDING INFORMATION
An exception applies
Exception under Regulation 11(1) of the EIRs applies to some the information you have requested. Personal Information disclosure would contravene Article 21 of the GDPR and, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in making the information available is outweighed by the public interest in not making the information available. 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 release as part of open, transparent and accountable government. However, this is outweighed by the public interest in ensuring that unfinished or incomplete information is not disclosed when it might give a misleading impression of the Government’s view on the matter to which the information relates. The finalised draft report has also now been released, therefore the previous drafts are no longer required.

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.