Press release: Scottish NHS Confederation responds to freedom of information consultation
25 May 2001
The Scottish NHS Confederation today (May 25) highlighted a number of practical concerns regarding the draft Freedom of Information (Scotland) Bill in its response to the Scottish Executive's consultation on the proposed legislation.
Director of the Scottish NHS Confederation, Hilary Robertson, said: "The Confederation believes that the draft Bill contains some broadly welcome measures to underpin and foster a philosophy of openness in Scotland's public bodies. However, clarification on a number of points is needed in order to ensure the legislation works effectively."
The procedure surrounding the payment of fees, for example, could be confusing for both applicants and public bodies. The draft Bill obliges public bodies to comply with a 20 working day deadline for dealing with requests whether or not a fee has been requested and adds that 'the time elapsed between issuing a fees notice and receiving the fee would be disregarded'. However, there is no obligation to provide the information requested if the applicable fee is not paid and the draft Bill allows applicants up to three months to pay the fee during which time the information they requested would not have to be provided. These two stipulations appear to be entirely at odds and would make it hard for public bodies to be sure they were complying with the legislation.
Notes for editors
- The Scottish NHS Confederation represents the majority of NHS trusts and boards in Scotland. It is dedicated to improving health policy and practice and to improving understanding of NHS management in Scotland.
Contact details
- Contact Media Relations Manager Joanna Clason on 020 7074 3306 or 07798 571078 or Senior Media Officer Amy Darlington on 020 7074 3304 or 07767 770309. For out of hours media enquiries, please call the Duty Press Officer on 07880 500726.
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