Freedom of Information request queries: FOI release

Information requested

1. In case the Scottish Government does not currently have resources to answer all of the questions to a Freedom of Information request, what questions does the Scottish Government select from the request? Will the questions be answered in order, or will only the easiest questions be answered, or anything else?

2. How often can Freedom of Information requests be sent?

3. Has there ever been a case where a Freedom of Information was nevertheless accepted and responded to, even if the Freedom of Information did not fit all of the requirements, but because the requester had special circumstances or suffered emotional pain?

4. If I do not have a title, would a request with the surname and an indicator of no title, like ‘(no title) Surname’, be accepted?

Response

The answer to your question is

1. In case the Scottish Government does not currently have resources to answer all of the questions to a Freedom of Information request, what questions does the Scottish Government select from the request? Will the questions be answered in order, or will only the easiest questions be answered, or anything else?

Under FOISA, the Scottish Government is under a legal obligation to respond to all valid Freedom of Information requests. We do not prioritise or order questions within a request; instead, we answer all parts of the request in line with the requirements of the legislation.

2. How often can Freedom of Information requests be sent?

The FOISA legislation does not limit the frequency of FOI requests. Individuals can submit as many requests as they wish.

Requesters may wish to take care that any individual request or a collection of requests submitted in a short space of time is not viewed as vexatious. There is further guidance regarding vexatious requests in the advice Briefing Section 14 Vexatious or Repeated Requests.pdf on the Scottish Information Commissioner’s (OSIC) website.

I can also recommend to you further useful guidance on the Commissioner’s website about making requests: How do I ask for information

3. Has there ever been a case where a Freedom of Information was nevertheless accepted and responded to, even if the Freedom of Information did not fit all of the requirements, but because the requester had special circumstances or suffered emotional pain?

The Scottish Government has a statutory duty under the legislation to respond to all valid information requests received.

We have a duty to provide advice and assistance to requestors which includes helping individuals make their requests; and providing our responses, as far as reasonable, in a format requesters may prefer.

Our Section 60 Codes of Practice sets out the good practice standards we follow in complying with FOISA and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) requests.

The Office of the Scottish Information Commissioner (OSIC) has produced helpful guidance which you may find useful to understand your rights under the legislation: Your right to know: a guide to freedom of information law in Scotland

4. If I do not have a title, would a request with the surname and an indicator of no title, like ‘(no title) Surname’, be accepted?

For FOIs, you must include your name - it could be your first name and surname (e.g. John Smith), or first initial and surname (e.g. J Smith), or title and surname (e.g. Mrs Smith). A surname without either a title, first name or initial will not be valid.

Your name must be included in the main text of the request. It's not enough, for example, to rely on your name being visible in an email address or even as the sender of an email.

More information and tips on making FOI requests is available on the OSIC website.

Requests for environmental information made under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) can be submitted anonymously.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.