"Comeback Complaints"

This is an automated receipt from SPSO to let you know that we have
received your email. Please do not reply to this.

If your email to us was a new complaint, we will register it and will
acknowledge it in writing within the next three working days. We will also
give you a reference number which you should use in any future
correspondence with us.

If your email was not about a new complaint, it will be forwarded to the
appropriate colleague who will reply to you in due course.

show quoted sections

Dear Mr Hamilton,

Please find attached our response to your request for information.

Yours sincerely,

Louise Rae
Information Analyst

show quoted sections

This is an automated receipt from SPSO to let you know that we have
received your email. Please do not reply to this.

If your email to us was a new complaint, we will register it and will
acknowledge it in writing within the next three working days. We will also
give you a reference number which you should use in any future
correspondence with us.

If your email was not about a new complaint, it will be forwarded to the
appropriate colleague who will reply to you in due course.

show quoted sections

Dear Mr Hamilton,

I refer to your request for a review of Louise Rae's handling of your request for information. I note that you disagree with the decision to ask you to pay a small contributory fee for the redacted challenge decision letters you requested. I have now considered the matter and can advise as follows.

Section 9 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA) says that an authority may impose a fee for processing some requests for information, while section 12 further explains that an authority may not be obliged to process a request if the cost to do so would exceed a certain amount.

Given the volume of information requested and the extent of redaction that we determined to be required, I consider that it was reasonable for us to consider the impact the processing of the request would have on the resources of this office. Careful consideration was therefore given to whether the SPSO was obliged to comply with the request, and if so, whether we were entitled to impose a charge for processing the request. In doing this, reference was made to Annex 3 of The Scottish Ministers' Code of Practice on the Discharge of Functions by Public Authorities under FOISA (the Section 60 Code) and also The Freedom of Information (Fees for Required Disclosure) (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (the Regulations). Both of these documents confirm that your request fell within the range that would entitle us to request a contributory fee towards the cost of processing your request.

Paragraph 4(3) of the Regulations confirms that "Where the projected costs exceed £100 but do not exceed the prescribed amount, the fee shall not exceed 10% of the difference between the projected costs and £100." The 'prescribed amount' is confirmed in both the Section 60 Code (Annex 3) and the Regulations (paragraph 5) as being £600. Therefore it is open to SPSO to ask a requestor to make a contributory payment to the processing of the request for information, where the estimated cost of supplying the information is between £100 and £600. Details of how the resources required to comply with your request were estimated and an explanation of how we arrived at the fee we requested are given in the original decision letter - there is nothing further I can add to that, other than to confirm we are entitled to impose a charge in your case, and that the costs have been estimated carefully and fairly, based on the relevant guidance and regulations.

I would like to further confirm that the decision to charge a contributory fee was based entirely on the resources required to comply with the request and was in no way influenced by the nature of your request, or the nature of the information requested.

YOUR RIGHT OF APPEAL
If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of any review carried out by the SPSO, you have a right under FOISA to appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner. If you wish to do so, you must appeal to the Commissioner within six months following the date of receipt of this review notice. The Commissioner's contact details are as follows:

The Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
KY16 9DS
Email: [email address]
Tel: 01334 464610

Yours sincerely,

David Robb
Director of Policy and Development

Scottish Public Services Ombudsman
4 Melville Street Edinburgh EH3 7NS
tel 0800 377 7330 fax 0800 377 7331
email [Scottish Public Services Ombudsman request email]
web http://www.spso.org.uk

show quoted sections