The Scottish Government has recently made public the legal advice it received regarding the independent investigation into whether former first minister Nicola Sturgeon violated the ministerial code. The 101-page document includes emails and legal opinions related to the probe conducted by James Hamilton, the former director of public prosecutions in Ireland, which ultimately found no breach of the code by Sturgeon.
Sturgeon had volunteered to be investigated by Hamilton in response to accusations that she had misled the Scottish Parliament regarding the inquiry into harassment complaints against her predecessor, Alex Salmond. In April 2021, a Freedom of Information request was made to obtain all evidence submitted to Hamilton’s inquiry. The Government initially argued that it did not possess the information, as Hamilton did, leading to a legal battle over disclosure.
After the Information Commissioner ordered the Government to release the information and the Court of Session rejected an appeal, another FOI request was made for the legal advice on appealing the decision. Despite the ministerial code advising against it, the Scottish Government agreed to provide the advice by October 26 and has now published it on their website.
The published legal advice reveals differing opinions among senior advisers. While some believed there were reasonable grounds to challenge the ruling, others were less optimistic about the prospects of success in an appeal. The Lord Advocate thought it was in favor of appealing, but the director of legal services advised against it, suggesting waiting for a more suitable case.
Concerns were raised about the implications of releasing the information, including the potential exposure of sensitive data to FOI requests and the impact on the independence of future investigations under the Ministerial Code. The lax approach to access permissions also raised doubts about whether the Government truly held the information in question.
Overall, the legal advice highlights the complexities and tensions surrounding the decision to appeal the ruling on disclosing evidence to Hamilton’s inquiry. The full document can be accessed on the Scottish Government’s website for those interested in delving deeper into the details of this ongoing saga.