- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 December 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Dorothy Bain on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how often the Aberdeen office of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) has consulted with victims and families before proceeding with cases involving fatalities in each of the last three years.
Answer
COPFS communicates with bereaved relatives in every case before proceeding with cases involving fatalities and continues to do so during those court proceedings. The Family Liaison Charter sets out the Crown’s obligations in relation to liaising with and providing information to bereaved relatives. These obligations apply equally to deaths arising in any area of Scotland.
The various specialist death investigation teams within COPFS consider deaths from all over the country, therefore communication with families in respect of fatalities occurring in Aberdeen, may be undertaken by staff situated in offices other than Aberdeen.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how SEPA is engaging with stakeholders, including local authorities and emergency services, to communicate operational changes to its 24-hour support system.
Answer
SEPA has robust resilience and emergency management processes in place with partners.
There is no change for stakeholders as they continue to use the unchanged Priority Partner number (emergency services). Previously callers would have used a specific number and spoke to a person in the Customer Hub and that process has not changed.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether SEPA’s customer hub will include specific provisions for handling regulatory compliance queries outside of standard working hours.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32136 on 18 December 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what assurances it has sought from SEPA that the transition to a customer hub will not impact its ability to respond to emergencies as a category 1 responder under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004.
Answer
SEPA’s 24-hour availability to the Scottish public remains fully in place, ensuring 24-7 coverage for critical support for Scotland’s communities and environment. Where appropriate, this includes direct access to a SEPA employee to ensure a timely and effective response.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the transition by SEPA to an automated 24-hour customer hub, and how it will ensure that the system is operationally ready before the closure of the current call centre.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32923 on 15 January 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what key performance indicators will be used to assess the (a) functionality and (b) reliability of SEPA’s automated customer hub.
Answer
As SEPA are directly responsible for its day-to-day operations, I have asked Nicole Paterson, Chief Executive of SEPA to respond. Her response is as follows:
SEPA plan the work it will deliver each year and regularly monitor, review and report on performance in a variety of formats.
The automated customer hub enables greater data insights for regular and accurate performance reporting. KPIs include first call resolution, average handling time, call abandoned, time spent customer facing as percentage of rota, forecast and adherence time and customer satisfaction.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 December 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Dorothy Bain on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of cases have been referred to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) by Police Scotland in each of the last five years.
Answer
The following table shows the percentage of criminal cases reported to COPFS by Police Scotland.
Criminal cases reported to COPFS | | | | | |
- grouped by financial year reported | | | | | |
| | Financial year reported | |
Of all criminal cases received:- | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
percentage reported by Police Scotland | 92% | 97% | 95% | 94% | 93% |
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Angus Robertson on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how Police Scotland evaluates the potential risks of unexploded ordnance to critical infrastructure, and what measures are in place to mitigate these risks.
Answer
This is an operational matter for Police Scotland.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what datasets are being developed to improve flood resilience decision making.
Answer
The National Flood Resilience Strategy demonstrates our commitment to improving flood resilience through the use of data. It sets out that we will work with partners to review how we can improve the presentation and use of data to drive flood resilient activity. We will also look how to best use data to raise community awareness of current and future flood exposure to inform decision making and support communities on their climate adaptation journeys and explore how developing new datasets may help improve decision making.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 December 2024
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Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 15 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many freedom of information requests it has refused in each of the last five years, broken down by the basis for refusal.
Answer
The following table sets out the number of requests where there has been no disclosure of any information (fully exempted):
Year | Full exemption of info |
2020 | 884 |
2021 | 1108 |
2022 | 1047 |
2023 | 1010 |
2024 | 1052 |
The exemptions applied are noted below, per year. Many responses can have more than one exemption applied. The information provided details the lead exemption as indicated by our case handlers on our case handling system.
| 2020 (Nos) | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
EIR exceptions | | | | | |
10(4)(a) The number of requests for which all of the information was not held | 81 | 80 | 65 | 124 | 130 |
10(4)(b) The number of requests refused because they were manifestly unreasonable (other than on grounds of cost) | 3 | 5 | 15 | 23 | 27 |
10(4)(c) Requests which are too general | | | | | |
10(4)(d) Material in the course of completion | 5 | 6 | 6 | 13 | 3 |
10(4)(e) Internal communications | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 4 |
10(5)(a) Substantial prejudice to international relations | | 1 | | 1 | |
10(5)(b) Substantial prejudice to course of justice | 1 | | | 2 | |
10(5)(c) Substantial prejudice to intellectual properties | | | 1 | | |
10(5)(d) Substantial prejudice to confidentiality of proceedings | | | 1 | | |
10(5)(e) Substantial prejudice to confidentiality of commercial or industrial information | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
10(5)(f) Substantial prejudice to the interests of a third party | | 1 | | 1 | |
10(5)(g) Substantial prejudice to the protection of the environment | | 3 | | | 1 |
10(8) Neither confirm nor deny whether environmental info held | | 1 | | | |
11(1) Personal data of the applicant | | | | 1 | 1 |
11(2) Third party personal data | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 |
11(6) Neither confirm nor deny whether personal data held | | | | | |
| 2020 (Nos) | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
FOI exemptions | | | | | |
12(1) Complying will exceed the upper cost limit | 124 | 104 | 173 | 145 | 179 |
14 Repeated/vexatious | 41 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 |
17 Information not held | 453 | 588 | 523 | 481 | 489 |
18 Neither confirm nor deny the information exists | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
25(1) Otherwise accessible | 65 | 198 | 130 | 73 | 100 |
25(3) Publication scheme | 1 | 1 | | 1 | 1 |
26(a) Disclosure prohibited: enactment | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
26(c) Disclosure prohibited: contempt of court | 1 | 1 | | | 1 |
27(1) Future publication: 12 weeks | 47 | 25 | 22 | 26 | 15 |
27(2) Future publication: programme of research | | | | 2 | |
28 Substantial prejudice to UK relations | 8 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
29(1)(a) Formulation/development of government policy | 7 | 8 | 19 | 5 | 5 |
29(1)(b) Ministerial communications | 3 | | 2 | | 1 |
29 (1)(c) Advice by Law Officers | | 1 | | 4 | |
29(1)(d) Operation of Ministerial private office | 2 | | | 3 | 1 |
30(b)(i) Substantial inhibition to free and frank provision of advice | 5 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 11 |
30(b)(ii) Substantial inhibition to free and frank exchange of views | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 2 |
30(c) Substantial prejudice to effective conduct of public affairs | 2 | 11 | 6 | 12 | 5 |
31(1) National security | | | | 1 | |
32(1)(a) Substantial prejudice to international relations | | | 1 | | |
32(1)(b) Confidential information obtained from abroad | | | | | |
33 (1)(a) Trade Secret | | 1 | | | |
33(1)(b) Substantial prejudice to commercial interests | 5 | 7 | 9 | 5 | 5 |
33(2)(b) Substantial prejudice to the UK administration | | | | | |
| 2020 (Nos) | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
FOI exemptions | | | | | |
34(1) Information held for the purposes of a criminal investigation | 1 | 1 | | | 2 |
34(2)(b) Information held regarding cause of death | | | | 1 | |
35(1)(a) Substantial prejudice to prevention or detection of crime | | | 2 | | 1 |
35(1)(g) Substantial prejudice to the exercise by a public authority for any of its functions (as listed in s35(2)) | | | | 1 | |
36(1) Confidentiality of communications | 3 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 6 |
36(2) Actionable breach of confidence | | | 3 | | |
37(1)(a) Court records | | | | | 1 |
37(1)(b) Court records: inquiry or arbitration | 1 | | | 3 | 2 |
38(1)(a) Personal data of the applicant | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 12 |
38(1)(b) Third party personal data | 9 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 7 |
38(1)(c) Personal census information | | | | | |
39(1) Endangerment to health or safety | | 3 | | | |
41(a)(b) Communications with the Royal Family and Honours | | | 1 | 1 | |
For the purposes of responding to this written PQ we have interpreted that the term ‘FOI request’ refers to requests responded to under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOI(S)A) and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRS).
We have also interpreted the question to mean those requests that were valid and refused in their entirety on exemption grounds. This means where no information was released to the requestor because an exemption or multiple exemptions were applied. Please note that we have not included requests that were invalid e.g. no name provided or those currently in progress and being answered.
When SG refuses a request it is because exemptions or exceptions apply to the information being requested. The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOI(S)A) and the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRS) allow responses to be fully exempted, where all information being requested has been withheld from disclosure, or partially exempted where some information has been released and some information withheld where an exemption has been applied.