Minister denies deliberate delay in releasing Salmond files

A Scottish minister has denied the suggestion that the government is deliberately delaying the release of information relating to an ethics investigation into Nicola Sturgeon.

Parliamentary business minister Graeme Dey insisted the materials would be published “as soon as possible”.

The Scottish Information Commissioner is preparing to take the Scottish Government to court over ministers’ failure to release the documents on time.

Materials relating to the James Hamilton inquiry into the former first minister were requested via freedom of information laws.

That inquiry cleared Sturgeon of breaching standards rules over meetings and calls she had with her predecessor, Alex Salmond, after harassment accusations against him emerged.

The information commissioner had instructed the government to release the information by the 15 January, then 22 January. When both deadlines were missed, the commissioner instructed solicitors to begin legal action.

Speaking in the chamber, Dey said ministers would “comply with the commissioner’s decision on this case as soon as possible” and said the delay was due to the danger of jigsaw identification.

This is where complainers in a sexual assault case can be identified, which would be in breach of a court order made while Salmond stood trial. This court order remains in place, even after Salmond was cleared of all charges.

Dey added: “We cannot release information that would breach those court orders and amount to a contempt of court.”

Tory MSP Douglas Ross said the information must be released before the Scottish Parliament dissolves and pre-election purdah begins. He also questioned whether civil servants “support the government delaying the release of this information”.

Dey reiterated the information would be released “as soon as practical”, adding “accelerated work” was underway. He did not provide a timescale.

He added: “He [Ross] appears to suggest – and I refute this absolutely – that this is a deliberate attempt to delay the release of this information. I could not have been clearer, this is not what is happening here.”

Labour MSP Katy Clark said the legal action being taken by the information commissioner was “unprecedented” and pushed for a timetable of when the documents would be released. She added: “The information commissioner is clear that he is not asking the Scottish government to break the law but to comply with it.”

Independent MSP Fergus Ewing urged the government to obtain “fresh advice” on releasing the information, saying ministers should be “making public all the redacted and withheld documents”.