Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice’s income tax remark discussions: FOI release
Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.
Information requested
All internal and external correspondence (including by direct messaging application) and notes of phone calls or meetings (in person or virtual) involving Scottish Government ministers, civil servants, special advisers, or press officers, which discuss the veracity of Shirley-Anne Somerville’s below remarks, and/or the question of whether a correction to the Official Report was necessary.
In the Scottish Parliament on 7th October 2025, Shirley-Anne Somerville said this:
“The member will be well aware that the income tax policies of the Scottish Government ensure that we actually have a majority of people in Scotland paying less tax than they do elsewhere within the United Kingdom.”
Response
I enclose a copy of all of the information you requested.
Exemptions under sections s.38(1)(a), s.38(1)(b) & s.30(b)(ii) of FOISA applies to some of the information you have requested. These exemptions apply to personal data relating to the applicant, the personal data relating to third parties and the free and frank exchange of views.
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Contact
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Central Correspondence Unit
Email: contactus@gov.scot
Phone: 0300 244 4000
The Scottish Government
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Edinburgh
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