Legal advice received pertaining to Harassment Committee: FOI release

Information requested

"I note that £76,000 of taxpayers money was spent on coaching civil servants for the recent parliamentary committee investigating complaints for Salmond.

Following this, I would like to request:

a) which company did this coaching?

b) any records relating to the coaching including minutes, communications, and correspondence

c) how many sessions did this consist of and who was coached?

d) is this company approved by Scottish Government procurement processes?"

Response

You ask about a parliamentary committee, which I have understood to be the Scottish Parliament Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

The Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for because Scottish Government committee witnesses were not coached.

The sum you refer to was spent on legal advice. No other external advisors were consulted by civil servants in their individual preparations. In accordance with the Civil Service Management Code published by the Cabinet Office, civil servants involved in a formal inquiry as a consequence of their employment may be entitled to receive individual legal advice, and a number of the witnesses did as part of their preparation.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

Please note the cost you refer to comes from the FOIs 202100137646 and 202000106713

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