Cladding Remediation Programme Single Open Call statistics: EIR release

Information requested

1. The number of buildings in Fife regarding which the Scottish Government has received expressions of interest through its Cladding Remediation Programme Single Open Call.

2. A list of addresses of each such building. If it is not possible to provide this information please provide any more general location information, e.g. the number of buildings in a given postcode area of council ward.

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.

1. As described in Scotland’s Cladding Remediation Programme update: Q2 2025, which was published on 29 July 2025, as at 30 June 2025, the Cladding Remediation programme had received 600 expressions of interest (EoIs) via the Single Open Call. This number includes EoIs that may be deemed out of scope of the Cladding Remediation Programme. Of these 600 EoIs, 17 were related to buildings in Fife local authority area. 

Scotland’s Cladding Remediation programme update is now a quarterly publication, so these numbers will be updated with totals to the end of Q3 2025 (September) at the end of October 2025.

2. Whilst our aim is to provide information whenever possible, under regulation 10(5)(a) of the EIR’s, a public authority may refuse a request for information as its release may be prejudice to international relations, defence, national security or public safety. This exemption applies for part 2 of your request because disclosure of this particular information would, or would be likely to, prejudice substantially public safety. The releasing of names and/or addresses of buildings into the public domain could risk wilful fire-raising, by individuals who may obtain this information and therefore presents a significant risk to public safety.

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 disclosing information as part of open, transparent and accountable government, and to inform public debate. However, there is a greater public interest in ensuring that public safety is maintained across Scotland by protecting information that may present a risk to life, if released into the public domain.

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.