Cabinet Secretary for Housing's dashboard information: FOI Review

Information requested

Original request: 202500471797

A copy of the dashboard containing information relating to housing which the Cabinet Secretary referenced in her interview on STV on 18 June 2025.

Response

Further to my letter of 30 July 2025, I have now completed my review of our response to your request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), for:

“A copy of the dashboard containing information relating to housing which the Cabinet Secretary referenced in her interview on STV on 18 June 2025.”

In your request for review you have stated “I am dissatisfied with the refusal to provide information.

Firstly, I believe that the statistical information which has been redacted is very likely to be similar if not identical to information held in statistical publications from the Scottish Government, as set out in the body of your response……Local authorities are required to provide statistical information on housing and homelessness to the Scottish Government as part of ongoing monitoring processes. They do so with the understanding that the information will be made public. I believe that a subsequent refusal to provide information as a result of a disclosure under FOISA would be a remote and hypothetical possibility.

I also do not believe that the public interest test has been applied correctly in this case. The information which has been redacted is statistical, and is not an exchange of views or commentary.”

I have concluded that a different decision should be substituted. I have reviewed the information that falls within the scope of your request and the information redacted under s.30(b)(ii) and have concluded that the information requested is statistical in nature and can be provided. I therefore enclose a copy of that information.

It should be noted that the information disclosed as part of this release is primary or source data up to May 2025. Corresponding data provided by Local Authorities for Official Statistics purposes will ultimately go through the extensive and rigorous analytical quality assurance processes before being made available within a range of Scottish Government official housing statistical publications, as follows:

• Homelessness statistics - gov.scot
• Supporting documents - Homelessness in Scotland: update to 30 September 2024 - gov.scot
• Local authority stock, March 2024 - Local authority total and vacant housing stock, Scotland, March 2024 - gov.scot

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 202500477234 - Information released - Annex

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646.7 kB