Holmes Mackillop advises social care service providers to establish procedures to routinely publish information ahead of bill to update FOI law

Law firm Holmes Mackillop has advised social care service providers to establish procedures to routinely publish information ahead of a private member’s bill to update freedom of information (FOI) law due to be laid in the Scottish Parliament.

This bill is likely to extend the reach of the FOI regime to the care and other sectors and impose greater responsibilities in terms of the proactive publication of information.

As FOI, giving people the right to receive information from public bodies, marks its 20th anniversary this week, Scottish information commissioner David Hamilton has noted that the Scottish government has delayed plans to take forward the extension of FOI to social care providers due to delays to the National Care Service Bill.

The Bill was introduced in the Scottish Parliament in June 2022 and is currently at Stage 2.

Holmes Mackillop director and Head of Corporate Ralph Riddiough said that the Scottish Government accepts that the extension of  information rights to private and third sector providers of care home and care at home services is consistent with the ethos of the legislation.

“This is not surprising, but neither is the caution being shown,” he said.

“Social care services are often stretched, and new administrative burdens come at a cost. Responding to FOI requests takes time and requires appropriate record keeping and searching procedures to be in place.

“Publication schemes are a barometer of the culture of an organisation and of the robustness of its information governance processes and protocols. As such, service providers could consider having publication schemes in place so that certain information is routinely published.”

ENDS

For further information please contact on Ralph Riddiough on tel 0141 226 4942