Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi.

Mr Cannop

Thank you for your email of 1 December requesting access to all
information held by the Scottish Government regarding Mr Abdelbaset Ali
Mohmed Al-Megrahi. Your request is made under the Freedom of Information
(Scotland) Act 2002. You specify that your request covers all documents
and records pertaining to the application to transfer Mr Al-Megrahi to
Libya pursuant to the Prisoner Transfer Agreement and the application to
release him on compassionate grounds.

As you may be aware, the recent Court of Session judgment - Glasgow City
Council and Dundee City Council v Scottish Information Commissioner [2009]
CSIH 73 (issued on 30 September 2009) - clarified that the Freedom of
Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) gives a right to information, not
documents, and that information requests must identify precisely the
information sought. A request is not valid if it does not, in accordance
with section 8(1)(c) of FOISA, describe the information requested. While
you have referred to particular documents and records, we are treating
that as simply clarification of your primary request, which is for
information regarding Mr Al-Megrahi.

The information you requested is available from our website:
[1]www.scotland.gov.uk/lockerbie . That includes the documents you specify
in relation to the applications for prisoner transfer and compassionate
release. Where material has been redacted, the reasons for doing so are
set out. In relation to "documents created in the aftermath of the
publication of the decision", we do not hold any information regarding
public opinion that is not already in the public domain.

You ask for information in letters received and replied to. We do
endeavour to provide information whenever possible. However in this
instance the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the information
requested would exceed the upper cost limit of £600 as there have been
several thousand such letters and emails. Under section 12 of FOISA public
authorities are not required to comply with a request for information if
the authority estimates that the costs of complying exceeds the upper cost
limit, which is currently set at £600 by regulations made under section
12. You may wish to consider what information it is that you are seeking
from these letters, and submit a more focused request.

If you are unhappy with this response to your request, you may ask us to
carry out an internal review by writing to Robert Gordon, Director-General
Justice and Communities, St Andrew's House, Regent Road, Edinburgh, EH1
3DG. Your request should explain why you wish a review to be carried out,
and should be made within 40 working days of receipt of this letter. We
will reply within 20 working days of receipt. If you are not satisfied
with the result of the review, you then have the right to make a formal
complaint to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

W GEORGE BURGESS

Deputy Director

Criminal Law & Licensing Division

Criminal Justice Directorate

Scottish Government

Rm GW.04, St Andrew's House

Regent Rd, Edinburgh

EH1 3DG

Tel: 0131 244 3537

22 December 2009

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Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
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References

Visible links
1. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/lockerbie

I am out of the office until 5 Jan.
If you require assistance in my absence, please contact the appropriate
Team Leader

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Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
recorded for legal purposes.