Ms Lynch requested from the Scottish Ministers (the Ministers) information as to the number of times Alex Salmond, First Minister has met, spoken or corresponded with Andrew Wilson of the Royal Bank of Scotland. Information was also requested as to the number of times Mr Salmond’s special advisers met or corresponded with Mr Wilson. The Ministers responded by disclosing some information to Ms Lynch, but relied on the exemption in section 33(1)(b) of FOISA for withholding other information from her. Following a review, Ms Lynch remained dissatisfied and applied to the Commissioner for a decision.
Following an investigation, the Commissioner found that disclosure of the information would, or would have been likely to, prejudice substantially a particular company’s commercial interests and that, on balance, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in the disclosure of the information. He therefore found that the Ministers had been entitled to withhold the information from Ms Lynch.
[2009] ScotIC 121 – 2009
Bailii
Scotland
Information
Updated: 30 November 2021; Ref: scu.434083