A right for all...
The 'right to information' provided by Scotland's FOI legislation can be exercised by all. 2009 saw the Commissioner consider a case from his youngest applicant to date – a requester who was just 17 when he brought his appeal.
Robert Wyllie had sought correspondence and legal advice from Scottish Borders Council relating to charging for food preparation for the elderly. Robert was interested in the debate around free personal care, and noted that his own council was one of those who planned to charge residents for food preparation under the policy. He was keen to understand the reason for this decision.
Having considered the case, the Commissioner found that the Council had been right not to disclose copies of the legal advice to Robert, as this was covered by the FOI exemption which protects the disclosure of such advice. Following consultation with the Commissioner's staff, however, relevant items of correspondence between Council officials were identified. The Council supplied these to Robert during the course of the investigation.
Robert has since described his use of FOI as 'really worthwhile', and says that the experience has influenced his decision to go on and study law at university.
