Information pertaining to catering, staffing and menus for official events: FOI Review

Information requested

Original Request - 202500462429

1. How many official events (state dinners, lunches, cocktail receptions) have been held at Bute House since the 1st of April 2024?

Please provide a brief description of each event as well as notable guests.

2. How much money has been spent on catering, staffing, and organising these events?

3. Please provide copies of any menus or programmes created for these events.

In accordance with section 21(4) of FOISA, I have also reached a decision on your request.

I apologise unreservedly for the delay in responding to your request. This was largely due to the requirement to collate a substantial amount information from a number of areas across the Scottish Government and also due to staff absence.

I can now provide our response to your original request.

Response

I have now completed my review of our failure to respond to your request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) for

1. How many official events (state dinners, lunches, cocktail receptions) have been held at Bute House since the 1st of April 2024?

Please provide a brief description of each event as well as notable guests.

2. How much money has been spent on catering, staffing, and organising these events?

3. Please provide copies of any menus or programmes created for these events.

In accordance with section 21(4) of FOISA, I have also reached a decision on your request.

I apologise unreservedly for the delay in responding to your request. This was largely due to the requirement to collate a substantial amount information from a number of areas across the Scottish Government and also due to staff absence.

I can now provide our response to your original request.

Question 1(a) - How many official events (state dinners, lunches, cocktail receptions) have been held at Bute House since the 1st of April 2024?

The First Minister has held 24 official events at Bute House between 1 April 2024 and 17 April 2025 

Question 1(b) - Please provide a brief description of each event as well as notable guests.

The information you have requested, up to and including December 2024, is publicly available from https://www.gov.scot/collections/ministerial-engagements-travel-and-gifts/. Ministerial engagements, gifts received and travel are proactively published by the Scottish Government, which includes guest lists for events held at Bute House. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website(s) listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

This is a formal notice that Section 27(1) of FOISA applies to the remainder of the information you have requested. This information will be published on the SG website within 12 weeks, including events held at Bute House for January, February, March and April 2025, and any guest lists still to be published at the link above. This exemption allows public authorities to refuse to disclose information if they already plan to publish it within the next 12 weeks. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

​​​​​​​Question 2 - How much money has been spent on catering, staffing, and organising these events?

​​​​​​​Since 1 April 2024 to 17 April 2025 the cost of catering and staffing the events was a total of £35,845.83.

​​​​​​​While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not hold the information relating to organising costs for these events as the responsibility to organise events sits alongside the wider duties of civil servants. This is a formal notice under Section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not hold some of the information you have requested.

​​​​​​​Question 3 - Please provide copies of any menus or programmes created for these events.

​​​​​​​I have included the relevant information at Annex A​​​​​​​.

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.

FOI 202500471460 - Information Released - Annex A

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