The purpose of obtaining and processing this information is to enable the International Relations Office (IRO) to collate names and contact information to arrange official visits to the Scottish Parliament. Some information about official visits may be archived with the National Registers of Scotland to maintain a record of the visit or occasion.
We will process normal category data such as names, addresses, contact email/telephone numbers.
We may also process special category data from official visitors or their representatives to allow us to make reasonable adjustments for reasons such as accessibility, dietary accommodations or to take account of religious or cultural requirements.
Special category data as defined by the UK General Data Protection Regulation applies to personal data revealing:
Information is provided by individuals attending the Scottish Parliament as official visitors.
Data protection law states that we must have a legal basis for handling your personal data. The processing of normal and special category data (relating to reasonable adjustments and dietary requirements etc) is that it is necessary for a task carried out in the public interest (Article 6(1)(e) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), section 8(d) of the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA)) and (for special category data) for reasons of substantial public interest (Article 9(2)(g) UK GDPR, section 10(3) and paragraph 6(2)(b), Part 2 of Schedule 1 to the DPA). The task is engagement with official visitors and delegations to establish and maintain diplomatic relations.
For the transfer of personal data to the National Records of Scotland, the legal basis is that it is necessary for archiving purposes in the public interest (Article 6(1)(e) UK GDPR and section 8(d) of the DPA and (for special category data) Article 9(2)(j) UK GDPR and section 10(2) DPA). 
Information is used to identify official visitors and to prepare itineraries and briefing materials for each visit. This information is provided to the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) staff and Members of the Scottish Parliament (³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ) taking part in the visit. We share this information with internal SPCB staff and ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ only as far as necessary. Information about official visits to the Scottish Parliament form part of the public record. Personal information contained within a public record will be retained in accordance with the Scottish Parliament records management policy and may be transferred to the Scottish Parliament archive at the National Records of Scotland where it will be publicly available.
Personal information is held securely on Scottish Parliament IT systems and retained for a period of 5 years.
In line with the principles underlying the , our staff may report a concern to the relevant authorities if they come across an issue during their work which causes them to think that a child or adult may be at risk of abuse or harm.
Data protection legislation sets out the rights which individuals have in relation to personal data held about them by data controllers. Applicable rights are listed below. You can exercise your data subject rights in particular circumstances depending on the purpose for which the data controller is processing the data and the legal basis upon which the processing takes place.
The following rights may apply:
You have the right to request a copy of the personal information about you that we hold.
Further information on how to make a data protection 'subject access request'.
You have the right to ask us to correct the personal data we hold about you. We want to make sure that your personal information is accurate, complete and up to date and you may ask us to correct any personal information about you that you believe does not meet these standards.
You have the right at any time to require us to stop using your personal information for direct marketing purposes. In addition, where we use your personal information to perform tasks carried out in the public interest then, if you ask us to, we will stop using that personal information unless there are overriding legitimate grounds to continue. Please note that the right to object to the processing of personal data for the purposes of a public interest task is restricted if there are legitimate grounds for the processing which override the interest of the data subject.
You have the right to ask us to delete personal information about you where:
Please note that the right allowing for deletion or erasure of personal data (right to be forgotten) does not apply in cases where personal data is processed for the purposes of the performance of a task carried out in the public interest.
In some cases, you may ask us to restrict how we use your personal information. This right might apply, for example, where we are checking the accuracy of personal information about you that we hold or assessing the validity of any objection you have made to our use of your information. The right might also apply where there is no longer a basis for using your personal information, but you don't want us to delete the data. Where this right is validly exercised, we may only use the relevant personal information with your consent, for legal claims or where there are other public interest grounds to do so.
Please contact us in any of the ways set out below if you wish to exercise any of these rights.
We keep this privacy statement under regular review and will place any updates on this website. Paper copies of the privacy statement may also be obtained using the contact information below.
This privacy statement was last updated on 16 September 2025.
If you have any further questions about the way in which we process personal data, or
about how to exercise your rights, please contact the Head of Information Governance
at:
The Scottish Parliament
Edinburgh
EH99 1SP
Email: [email protected]
Please contact us if you require information in another language or format
If you are concerned that we have not handled your personal information properly you can make a complaint to the Information Governance Team of the Scottish Parliament at the following address: [email protected]. We will respond to your complaint without undue delay and within one month. If, having made a complaint, you are still concerned that your personal information has not been handled properly, you can make a complaint to the .
Or by phone at: 0303 123 1113