Correspondence with Equnior and MSP Norway trip: FOI release

Information requested

1. Copies of any correspondence between Michael Matheson MSP and Equnior during the months of May 2022 and March 2023.

2. Briefings and records associated with Michael Matheson MSP's trip to Norway in May 2022 including the 'Energy Transition Summit, Kristiansand' (As referenced on the FOI request response, page 22*).

3. Briefings and records associated with Michael Matheson MSP's trip to Norway in March 2023 (as recorded on the 'Ministerial engagements, travel and gifts' document for March 2023).

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.

I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested. I will respond to each part of your request in turn;

1. Copies of any correspondence between Michael Matheson MSP and Equinor during the months of May 2022 and March 2023.

Relevant correspondence is enclosed. An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some of the information requested because it is personal data of a third party and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. This exception is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception.

2. Briefings and records associated with Michael Matheson MSP's trip to Norway in May 2022 including the 'Energy Transition Summit, Kristiansand' (As referenced on the FOI request response, page 22*).

Mr Matheson did not travel to Norway in May 2022. Mr Matheson provided a pre-recorded keynote speech at the event you have referenced in your request. The relevant correspondence is enclosed.

3. Briefings and records associated with Michael Matheson MSP's trip to Norway in March 2023 (as recorded on the 'Ministerial engagements, travel and gifts' document for March 2023).

Mr Matheson did not travel to Norway in March 2023. There is no record of this in the ministerial engagements tracker which you have referred to in your request.

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 part of your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs.

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, however we are unable to release documentation that 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.

FOI 202400410492 - Information Release - Annex

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10 page PDF

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326.9 kB