Scottish Information Commissioner launches Annual Report

Scottish Information Commissioner launches Annual Report

Ministers and councils have been the subject of almost two-thirds of requests to the Scottish Information Commissioner, a report has revealed.

The figures, contained in the commission's fourth annual report, show a total of 1,574 requests were lodged between 2005 and 2007. Central government received 267 requests for information, with a total of 677 sent to local authorities.

Applications to government-linked public bodies were also significant. There were a further 170 cases where people contacted the Information Commissioner, Kevin Dunion, in a bid to get more information from the police.

But Mr Dunion said he was surprised by the low numbers of requests for information from the health and education sectors. Only 101 cases involved the national health service, including health boards, NHS 24 and individual medical practices, while just 46 cases involved universities and colleges.

Info requests centre on politics (BBC News, 10 March 2008)

Commissioner's Annual Report (Scottish Information Commissioner's website)