Ministerial correspondence containing the word abattoir: EIR release

Information requested

Any email correspondence sent to or by the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and/or the Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity containing the word “abattoir” since 8 May 2024.

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.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested, using the date range of 8 May 2024 to the date of your request, due to exceptions under regulations: 10(4)(e) (internal communications); 11(2) (personal data); 10(4)(d) (material in the course of completion); 6(1)(b) (information already publicly available); and 10(5)(e) (confidentiality of commercial or industrial information). The reasons why these exceptions apply are explained below.

An exception under regulation 11(2) (personal data) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested. Where the environmental information requested includes personal data about an individual other than the applicant (third party personal data), the data does not have to be made available if disclosure would breach any of the data protection principles contained in Article 5(1) of the UK GDPR.

An exception under regulation 10(4)(e) (internal communications) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested, including some emails which have been fully redacted for this reason. 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. This is explained further below.

Paragraph 2.1 of the Scottish Ministerial Code provides that "the privacy of opinions expressed and advice offered within the Government should be maintained" at all times. Cabinet papers, [including agendas/minutes] are essential elements which support and assist collective discussion in the private space which Ministers need to reach agreed positions. The weekly meeting of the Scottish Cabinet is the highest decision-making forum within the Scottish Government, and it follows that all information considered by Cabinet must be handled with great care. Properly functioning Cabinet processes are generally recognised to be of vital public interest: Cabinet government is based on the principle of collective responsibility, which the Scottish Ministerial Code defines in the following terms:

‘The principle of collective responsibility requires that Ministers should be able to express their views frankly in the expectation that they can argue freely in private while maintaining a united front when decisions have been reached. This in turn requires that the privacy of opinions expressed and advice offered within the Government should be maintained. … The internal processes through which a Government decision has been made should not normally be disclosed.’ (Scottish Ministerial Code, 2018 edition, paragraphs 2.1 and 2.4).

Cabinet papers, [including agendas/minutes] are invariably produced on the assumption that they will not be disclosed until a significant amount of time has elapsed.

We recognise that there is a public interest in disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, there is a greater public interest in maintaining the process of achieving collective responsibility within a private space within which policy positions can be explored and refined by Ministers in order that the Government, as a whole, can reach a final decision. This private thinking space also allows for all options to be properly considered, so that good policy decisions can be taken. Premature disclosure is likely to undermine the full and frank discussion of issues between Ministers, which in turn will undermine the quality of the policy-/decision-making process.

An exception under regulation 10(4)(d) (material in the course of completion) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested. This exception covers material which is still in the course of completion, unfinished documents and incomplete data. The information exempted under this regulation is due to be published within the next 90 days.

An exception under regulation 10(5)(e) (confidentiality of commercial or industrial information) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested. This exception allows us to withhold information where disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice substantially the confidentiality of commercial or industrial information where such confidentiality is provided for by law to protect a legitimate economic interest.

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, this is outweighed by the public interest in withholding information that if released would be likely to cause substantial harm to a legitimate economic interest.

An exception under regulation 6(1)(b) (information already publicly available) of the EIRs applies to some of the information you have requested, because it is already publicly available through other FOI releases. Web addresses have been provided in these instances that will take you to the relevant FOI release.

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.

EIR 202500471354 - Information released - Annex

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