The Scottish government is embroiled in a legal battle with the country’s Information Commissioner over its failure to meet deadlines to release documents related to an ethics investigation into former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
The Commissioner’s office has taken the unprecedented step of instructing solicitors to begin legal proceedings, which could result in the government being held in contempt of court. This comes after ministers were ordered to publish correspondence with the secretariat working for James Hamilton, the independent advisor who cleared Sturgeon of breaching the ministerial code during an investigation into her predecessor, Alex Salmond.
The government has missed a series of deadlines to produce the requested documents, with Deputy First Minister John Swinney telling members of the Scottish Parliament that it will “not take much longer” for the papers to be handed over. However, the Information Commissioner, David Hamilton, has stated that full and timely compliance with information requests is a vital part of the freedom of information system, leading to the decision to take legal action.
The legal action is part of a broader dispute over the release of evidence related to the Sturgeon and Salmond inquiries. The government is appealing against two key court orders, including one to produce some of the material considered by Hamilton during his ministerial code probe. Ministers have cited concerns that releasing certain documents could identify complainants in the criminal case against Salmond, which saw him cleared of sexual assault charges in 2021.
Benjamin Harrop, a member of the public who made the original freedom of information request, expressed his support for the Information Commissioner’s decision, describing it as “really quite remarkable” that the matter had resulted in legal action. Harrop noted that the government had been given since 1st December to provide a new response, and said the legal action demonstrates that authorities cannot simply disregard legal deadlines without consequence.
The Scottish government has been approached for comment on the ongoing legal proceedings.
