Statistics of documents shredded or destroyed: EIR Review

Information requested

Can you please tell me how many documents were shredded or otherwise destroyed by the Scottish Government in the last complete financial year, and so far this year?

How many of them were shredded or destroyed by the First Minister’s office?

If it is impossible to give a precise number, can you tell me please the approximate volume (eg in tonnes) for each of the questions above?

Can you classify the nature of the documentation destroyed [eg it was personal documentation, or policy documentation], and tell me why it was destroyed?

Response

Further to my letter of 13 April 2022, I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) for;

• Can you please tell me how many documents were shredded or otherwise destroyed by the Scottish Government in the last complete financial year, and so far this year?
• How many of them were shredded or destroyed by the First Minister’s office?
• If it is impossible to give a precise number, can you tell me please the approximate volume (eg in tonnes) for each of the questions above?
• Can you classify the nature of the documentation destroyed [eg it was personal documentation, or policy documentation], and tell me why it was destroyed?

I have concluded that the original decision should be confirmed, with some modifications.

You requested how many documents were shredded or otherwise destroyed by the Scottish Government. As explained in the FOI responses to both the 2019 and 2022 requests, it is not possible to provide figures for documents shredded by just the Scottish Government. Several buildings managed/owned by Scottish Government also accommodate Executive Agencies and other public sector bodies. As collections are carried out by building, it is not possible to disaggregate the Confidential Waste produced by core Scottish Government from that produced by these other bodies. The 2019 response included overall tonnage of confidential waste collected from buildings managed by Scottish Government. A decision was taken in the 2022 response that this information is out of scope as your request specifically asks for documents shredded or destroyed by just the Scottish Government. However as we hold the information at a building level I have included it below.

We do not hold figures by number of documents, but the overall tonnage of Confidential Waste collected from buildings managed by Scottish Government and then destroyed was:

• 2020/21 25.980 metric tonnes
• 2021/22 (to 31/12/21) 66.415 metric tonnes

No data is recorded for the use of local shredders. All shredded documentation is sent for recycling.

You also asked for how many documents were shredded or destroyed by the First Minister’s office. In 2019 confidential waste collections were requested and logged electronically. Since March 2020 the software used under normal circumstances to instruct the uplift of Confidential Waste bags was not available to Facilities Services Help Desk staff while they were working from home. Uplifts of confidential waste are requested by phone and no records are kept. It is therefore not possible to provide a breakdown of the amount of documents destroyed by the First Ministers office after March 2020.

No record is kept of the nature of the documentation being destroyed or the reason for its destruction.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. Therefore we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. The Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested because it is not collected.

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 information about the destruction of documents by the Scottish Government, clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

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.