Watchdog urged to launch probe into Scottish Government use of WhatsApp

The Liberal Democrats have raised concerns over transparency

Scotland's information watchdog has been urged to launch an investigation into the use of messaging services such as WhatsApp in the Scottish Government.

The Liberal Democrats raised concerns that ministers and advisers may be using such services to bypass Freedom of Information legislation.

The party has now written to the Scottish Information Commissioner, Daren Fitzhenry, urging him to look into the matter.

The Liberal Democrats have raised concerns about the use of WhatsApp in the Scottish Government

The Government said it is committed to openness and transparency, and insisted documents are filed “according to subject and policy area and not according to the medium through which they were communicated”.

The use of encrypted messaging services for government business has long been a source of concern.

The Lib Dems said discussions of government business among ministers and civil servants on WhatsApp appear to have only been disclosed on a couple of occasions. One of these was a record of messages between Maree Todd, who was then the minister for children and young people, and her private office. The other, a single message between two civil servants, appears to be a text rather than a WhatsApp message.

Lib Dem MSP Willie Rennie said: “Speaking with colleagues and journalists who are experienced at using Freedom of Information legislation to uncover matters of considerable public interest, none of them can ever recall seeing WhatsApp messages between ministers, special advisers or officials released to the public. The Government has even admitted that special advisers are in WhatsApp channels relating to their portfolios yet this information hasn’t appeared in the public domain for scrutiny.

“It’s important that practices relating to the retention and release of data are sufficiently robust to capture discussions taking place on channels like WhatsApp. This is especially significant because the likes of the Covid public inquiry need to get the fullest picture and have access to all the relevant information.

“I have written to the Information Commissioner about examining the Scottish Government’s use of channels of communication such as WhatsApp and the processes that are in place for ensuring that these messages are recorded and captured in Freedom of Information requests.

“A more proactive publication regime would undoubtedly help by putting more of this information into the public domain as a matter of course but given the Scottish Government’s record on issues of transparency I will not be holding my breath.”

The Lib Dems also raised concerns about one-to-one text conversations on Microsoft Teams, the main business communications platform used by the Scottish Government, which are only retained for seven days.

Mr Rennie’s letter to the Information Commissioner concludes: “In 2018, you investigated lengthy delays afflicting Scottish Government responses to Freedom of Information requests and set out expectations for improving working processes. Would you consider a similar examination of the Scottish Government’s use of channels of communication such as WhatsApp and the processes that are in place for ensuring that these messages are recorded and captured in Freedom of Information requests?”

A spokesman for Mr Fitzhenry said: "While new technologies and ways of working can bring considerable efficiencies to the delivery of public services in Scotland, documentation of how decisions are informed is a vital aspect of public record keeping, including decisions recorded in messaging systems such as WhatsApp. Freedom of Information legislation in Scotland provides the public with the mechanism and the right to access and receive recorded information held by Scottish public authorities, who must observe processes to record, retain, identify and locate any such content when required.

“In relation to the specific concerns and points raised by Mr Rennie in his letter, these will be carefully considered by the Commissioner, who will respond to Mr Rennie directly.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The Scottish Government is committed to openness and transparency and recognises that scrutiny is the bedrock that underlies effective governance. Freedom of Information handling plays a critical role in that.

“Records management policy states that information and records should be retained as long as they are required to support the Scottish Government in its business requirements and legal obligations. These documents are filed according to subject and policy area and not according to the medium through which they were communicated.”