The SNP has been accused of overseeing a “rotten culture of secrecy” after new figures show the vast majority of FOI responses are never fully answered.
Figures obtained by Scottish Labor show only a third of responses to the SNP government were submitted in full and on time.
In 2023, the Scottish Government received 4,459 Freedom of Information requests. However, he received complete responses to only 1,434 requests within the legal deadline.
This means that as many as 68% of people were late, rejected, or edited.
The SNP has been accused of overseeing a ‘rotten secret culture’
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Just a week ago, George Adam, the SNP minister responsible for responding to requests, claimed he had overseen improvements to the way the government responded to requests.
“Since I took up this post, I have been very proactive and strived to provide as much information as possible to those who requested it,” he said.
“Will journalists and the public be upset about not being informed? That’s inevitable.
“A lot of FOI is a misunderstanding of what the question is actually asking. Some people ask a huge range of questions to get all the information, but that’s too much, and things like that You will think that it is not given” answer.
“So a lot of times it’s just making sure you have the details. I’ve told journalists in the past, just explain exactly what you’re looking for, and we’ll help you answer.” Most importantly, the Scottish Government believes in openness and transparency. ”
But Scottish Labor accused the party of presiding over a “rotten secret culture”.
Deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “Once again the SNP is disrespecting the people and trying to crush scrutiny.
“We have seen the SNP’s disregard for transparency exposed time and time again, from its dismal record on FOI to its shameful destruction of evidence during the coronavirus pandemic.
Scottish Labor accused the party of presiding over a “rotten secret culture”.
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“Scotland deserves better than the rotten culture of secrecy and cover-up that this SNP government has created.
“Scottish Labor will strengthen FOI laws and clean up Holyrood by increasing government accountability and oversight.”
Parliamentary Business Secretary George Adam said: “The Scottish Government now completes 97% of FOI requests within statutory deadlines, despite an increase of 66% since 2019 and more than 5,000 requests in 2023. “We’re responding. Inevitably, sometimes that’s what we need to do.” We require organizations to take action to apply exemptions, such as withholding personal data such as names, as Congress agreed to when passing the law.
“Scotland has some of the most open and far-reaching freedom of information laws in the UK and the Scottish Government will continue to comply with its obligations under those laws to ensure openness and transparency.”