Update to FOI/17/01687 Scottish Government's organisational chart and staff working abroad: FOI release

Information requested

Please repeat and update the 2017 FOI request FOI/17/01687 Scottish Government's organisational chart and staff working abroad, to add the same information for years 2017 to the current date.

The questions in the referenced FOI were originally as follows:

1. Every version of the Scottish Government's organisational chart (high level) since 2007
2. Every version of the Scottish Government's organisational chart (operational level, including individual job titles within departments/directorates) since 2007
3. Total number of external advisory boards/panels/bodies advising the Scottish Government/Scottish Ministers in existence since 2007, their present status, alongside their names
4. Location of all Scottish Government offices/branches outside Scotland, and the date which they were opened
5. Names of all the countries outside the United Kingdom that have a Scottish Government staff presence

Response

I enclose a copy of most of the information you requested.

Sections 1 and 2:

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because an exemption(s) under section 17(1) of FOISA applies to that information. The reason why that exemption applies are explained below.

The attached excel workbook contains the organisational structure (for section 1 and job titles (for section 2) combined into one sheet per year. The structure and job titles are drawn from our HR system.

We consider Directorate-General to be high level and Divisional to be operational. Please note that the current structure of the organisation in the data is at end December 2022. This data can be used to create both high level and operational organisational charts. We have provided a unique list of job titles within each Division, since July 2017 only. Data for 2007-2016 is not held. This is because there is no centrally held historic information on job titles. Job titles are a 'user-entered' field within our electronic HR system and we have provided the data as recorded in the system. This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have all of the information you have requested.

Given the pivot of staff from across Scottish Government in response to the pandemic, there will be a lower level of accuracy in job titles recorded on the eHR system, particularly during 2020 and 2021. Typically staff were not moved in the organisational structure but changed their work objectives towards the COVID response.

Section 3:

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because an exemption(s) under section 12(1) of FOISA applies to that information.

In this instance the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the information on the total number of external advisory boards/panels/bodies advising the Scottish Government/Scottish Ministers in existence since 2007, their present status, alongside their names would exceed the upper cost limit of £600. The reason for this is that to locate and retrieve that information we would need to conduct a search of all of the records of the Scottish Government. 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(1).

You may, however, wish to consider reducing the scope of your request in order that the costs can be brought below £600, for example by narrowing the timeframe covered in the question and reducing the scope to a particular area of the Scottish Government. You may also find it helpful to look at the Scottish Information Commissioner's 'Tips for requesting information under FOI and the EIRs' on his website at: http://www.itspublicknowledge.info/YourRights/Tipsforrequesters.aspx.

Sections 4 and 5:

The table below shows each of the Scottish Government branches located outside Scotland, with the date that they were opened. This is also a list of the countries where Scottish Government has a staff presence.

SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE	DATE OPENED
Beijing, China	November 2005
Berlin, Germany	April 2018
Brussels, Belgium	October 1999
Copenhagen, Denmark	May 2022
Dublin, Ireland	January 2016
London, England	April 2017
Ottawa, Canada*	October 2018
Paris, France	November 2018
Washington DC, United States	October 2001

*Before 2018 the Scottish Government had a member of staff based in Toronto. The United States budget (which was called the North America Budget at that time) included the costs for this post. This post moved to Ottawa following the opening of a Scottish Government office.

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.

Scottish Government Core Organisational Hierarchies 2007-2022

File type

Excel document

File size

664.7 kB