Freedom of Information> Introduction

Welcome to SLAINTE's Freedom of Information (FOI) section

This area provides a basic overview of FOI for the Scottish information professional. It aims to supplement the guidance given by the Scottish Information Commissioner, and suggests resources and information of practical use. It does not intend to offer detailed information on complying fully with the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).

Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002: A Guide for the Information Professional (PDF format) is available to download. This is a SLIC/CILIPS Continuing Professional Development Report on the FOISA, licensed under a Creative Commons Licence. This includes sections on:

• the impact of FOISA on library and information professionals;
• legislative differences between Scotland and the rest of the UK;
• publication schemes;
• FOISA exemptions;
• records management; and
• request flowcharts.

What is Freedom of Information?

At the heart of FOI is the right of everyone to access information. Many governments are now requiring public authorities and other publicly funded organisations to provide the public with access to as much information as possible. This is resulting in a major change in culture, with more emphasis on greater openess and accountability. However, there must also be rules and regulations to cover instances where information is not deemed suitable for people to access. This is why the Freedom of Information and related legislation have been created and implemented.

In this climate public sector organisations and institutions, such as government agencies and educational institutions, must ensure that they are 'information compliant', i.e. that they make as much of their information available to the public while at the same time complying with the relevant legislation. If there are any FOI requests they must provide this information, unless this information is exempt.