Communications referring to the captain of the Marinera/Bella-1 tanker: FOI Review

Information requested

Original request 202600512107

Please provide all internal Scottish Government communications (emails, WhatsApp messages, submissions, minutes) between 25 and 28 January 2026 referring to:

(a) the judicial review and interim order granted by Lord Young in the Court of Session in relation to the captain of the Marinera/Bella-1 tanker; and
(b) the possible or actual removal of the captain and first officer from Scottish jurisdiction.

Please state the date and time when any Scottish Minister, the Lord Advocate, or the Solicitor General was first informed that the captain and/or first officer of the Marinera had been, or were about to be, transferred to a US vessel and removed from UK territorial waters.

Please provide any record (minute, email, note) of contact between the Scottish Government/Crown Office and UK Government departments (including MoD, FCDO, Home Office or Cabinet Office) between 25 and 28 January 2026 that refers to the removal of the captain or first officer of the Marinera from Scotland.

 

Response

In your request for review you confirm that your original request contained three distinct elements, which you summarise as:

internal Scottish Government communications between 25 and 28 January 2026 on (a) the judicial review/interim order and (b) the possible/actual removal;

• the date and time when any Minister/Law Officers were first informed of the transfer; and
• any records of contact between the Scottish Government/Crown Office and UK Government departments between 25 and 28 January 2026 referring to the removal.

We answered the second of these three questions. You were dissatisfied with the response in relation to the first and third questions and asked us to:

• set out the basis of our estimate including which directorates or business areas were scoped, what search locations and parameters were considered, and how the estimated staff time (at the statutory rate of £15 per hour) would exceed 40 hours.
• explain whether we considered whether any one of these elements, taken separately, could be answered within the £600 cost limit, and if so, why none of them can be provided even in part.
• identify, as part of the review, which specific business area(s) you consider most relevant (for example, International Relations Unit, Constitution and Cabinet, Justice Directorate, Crown Office liaison), roughly what volume of material in those areas is driving the cost estimate, and how you suggest I might most effectively narrow the request (for example, to one business area, one of the two sub‑topics, or a shorter time window within 25–28 January).
• consider the public interest in transparency in relation to the information requested.

Outcome of review

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the information requested in your first question would exceed the upper cost limit of £600. Under section 12 of FOISA public authorities are not required to comply with a request for information if the authority estimates that the cost of complying would exceed the upper cost limit, which is currently set at £600 by Regulations made under section 12.

However, we could and should have considered your third question separately and, doing so, I am able to provide some of the information you have requested. This is set out in Annex A.

Cost estimate and methodology

In responding to your initial request for information, the case handler commissioned searches of inboxes and local records from relevant officials in addition to searches of the Scottish Government’s corporate records. These searches identified a significant volume of potentially in-scope information. The case handler took a sample to determine the information that is in scope of the request and time to prepare it for release.

These estimates allowed the case handler to calculate an average time to respond to the request, following Scottish Information Commissioner guidance. It was determined that to answer parts 1 and 2 of your request would have exceeded the £600 limit set by Regulations made under sections 12.

I undertook new searches and repeated the exercise considering only your first question, and have found that the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the information necessary to respond to this question would exceed the upper cost limit. As such I am upholding the decision to refuse this part of your request under section 12 of FOISA.

Segmentation and partial disclosure

Guidance from the Scottish Information Commissioner states that requests for information should be considered separately when applying the section 12 cost limit exemption, except where the requests are so interlinked that to do so would be artificial. Requests are interlinked where, in order to answer them, it is necessary to look at the same information.

In undertaking this review I considered whether your first question should be interpreted as two separate questions for the purposes of section 12. I concluded that the questions were interlinked and considering them separately would be artificial, and therefore it was correct to consider them as one (as they were originally framed).

The initial response to your request considered your first and third questions as interlinked. However, this was due to your third question being interpreted as requesting records of contact between [any of] (a) the Scottish Government, (b) Crown Office and (c) UK Government departments. What you asked for was records of contact between (a) [either] the Scottish Government [or] Crown Office and (b) UK Government departments. Properly interpreted, this question is not interlinked with the first question, and we could and should have considered it separately. I apologise that we did not do so.

As a result of this I have revisited the third part of your request, reviewed the information that is in scope and have released some of it, subject to exemptions that apply to it. This has been released as Annex A.

An exemption under section 32(1) International relations applies to some of the information you have requested. This applies to information contained in email chains, briefings and advice exchanged between officials and between officials and Ministers. It applies to protect UK relations with the states it engages with.

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. We recognise that there is some public interest in release because of the interest in disclosing information as part of an open and transparent government. However, this is outweighed by the public interest in the UK maintaining relations with the states it engages with. It is highly likely that releasing such information would result in substantial prejudice to the UK-USA relationship.

An exemption under section 36(1) Confidentiality applies to some of the information you have requested. This applies to information contained in email chains, briefings and advice exchanged between officials and between officials and Ministers. It applies so as to protect the confidentiality of communications that could be maintained in legal proceedings.

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. We recognise that there is some public interest in release because of the interest in disclosing information as part of an open and transparent government. However, this is outweighed by the public interest in protecting the confidentiality of communications that could be maintained in legal proceedings.

An exemption under section 37(1)(a)(i) Court records, etc applies to some of the information you have requested. This applies to a document lodged with a court for the purposes of court proceedings. This exemption is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption.

An exemption under section section 38(1)(b) of FOISA applies to some of the information you have requested. This applies to personal information of officials in the Scottish Government and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS). This exemption is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption.

Within part three of your request you have asked for information between “the Scottish Government/Crown Office and UK Government departments…”. COPFS is a separate public authority and as such we are only able to provide information held by the Scottish Government. If you want to request information on records of contact between COPFS and UK Government departments, you may wish to contact COPFS, who may be able to help you, by email at FOI@copfs.gov.uk or by writing to:

Information Governance Unit
Policy Division
25 Chambers Street
Edinburgh
EH1 1LA

Duty to advise and assist

In terms of further narrowing a request to specific areas within government, the International Relations Unit provided policy input and advice, and the Civil Contingencies Unit was also engaged in a coordinating role with delivery partners. You might also wish to request information and advice provided to a specific Scottish Minister or specific Ministers rather than trawling all internal correspondence, although noting that exemptions may still apply.

As noted above, COPFS is a separate public authority and they may also be able to help you.

Public interest context

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide the information you have requested in your first question because an exemption under section 12 (cost limit) applies. This exemption is not subject to the 'public interest test', so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption.

Where exemptions apply to the information identified in response to your third question, I have explained that above, including where I have applied the public interest test if the exemption relied upon is subject to it.

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 202600514642 - Information Released - Annex A

File type

PDF

File size

117.9 kB