Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill correspondence: January-May 2022 EIR release
Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
Information requested
- Any internal Scottish Government correspondence regarding the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill from 1 January 2022 to 26 May 2022.
- Any external correspondence received by the Scottish Government regarding the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill between the 1 January 2022 to 26 May 2022.
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.
Response
We attach a copy of some of the information you requested.
Some of the information you have requested is available from https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3167/publications. Under regulation 6(1)(b) of the EIRs, we do not have to give you information which is already publicly available and easily accessible to you in another form or format. 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. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some the information you have requested because exceptions under regulations 10(4)(d) (material in the course of completion, etc.) and 10(4)(e) (internal communications) of the EIRs apply. The reasons why these exceptions apply are explained in 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 http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.
Contact
Please quote the FOI reference
Central Enquiry Unit
Email: ceu@gov.scot
Phone: 0300 244 4000
The Scottish Government
St Andrews House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG
There is a problem
Thanks for your feedback