Information Commissioner's Office

Summary: The complainant requested information recording exchanges between the public authority and the Advocate General for Scotland concerning exemption for Orkney and Shetland constituency from Government plans to reduce the numbers of and equalise the size of Parliamentary constituencies. The public authority refused the request and cited the exemptions provided by the following sections of the Act: 35(1)(a) (information relating to formulation or development of government policy), 35(1)(b) (information relating to Ministerial communications) and 35(1)(c) (information relating to the provision of advice by the Law Officers). The Commissioner finds that sections 35(1)(a) and 35(1)(b) were cited correctly, but that section 35(1)(c) was not engaged. The public authority is required to disclose the information withheld under section 35(1)(c). The Commissioner also finds that the public authority breached the procedural requirements of the Act through its handling of the request.
Section of Act/EIR & Finding: FOI 10 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 17 - Complaint Upheld, FOI 35 - Complaint Partly Upheld