SCOTTISH LABOUR hit out at a “rotten culture of secrecy” today after it was revealed that the Scottish government honours less than a third of freedom of information (FoI) requests in full and on time.

The information, ironically released under FoI, showed that in 2023 the government received 4,459 requests for information  but that only 1,434 resulted in full disclosure within the statutory 20-day time limit.

The revelation that as many as 67.8 per cent of all FoI requests had been refused, been responded to late or ended in redacted information being supplied comes a little over a week after the Scottish information commissioner, the independent public official responsible for promoting and enforcing FoI law, launched an inquiry into the use of “informal messaging” during the Covid-19 crisis.