On 26 Nov 2012, at 22:54, Francis Davey wrote: > 2012/11/26 Alex Skene <[email protected]> > It sounds to me that the Council should have considered the request > under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 > ("EIRS"). > > I'm not entirely convinced that the information requested would fall under > the EIR, though Alex makes a good case. However, it would be something to > consider (though in fact the OP's problem is now solved). For future > reference, under the EIR prejudice to third party copyright may be a factor > that is taken into account in deciding whether to release, but it is not > definitive.l > > -- > Francis Davey
Footnote: I asked Edinburgh Council's FOI people why Planning documents could be published freely, but Building documents could not - apparently because (so I was told by the Building people) of copyright concerns. I highlighted that the copyright owners in the two cases were probably one and the same, and expressed my confusion. Here's the response (which came within a few hours). Simon ---------------------- PLANNING DRAWINGS: Part of the planning process involves an engagement with the public and other interested parties. In order to engage fully, and in the interests of open and transparent decision making, this council publishes a wide range of information on planning applications, including the drawings submitted. Copyright legislation makes provision for members of the public to make copies of the drawings submitted, without there being any breach of copyright, as long as these copies are made solely to enable them to make representations or to facilitate discussion within an amenity group or community council or in a public meeting etc in respect of the application. There is therefore no legal impediment to making such information available in relation to planning applications and indeed the Scottish Government encourages planning authorities to make as much information available as possible, commensurate with data protection and other relevant legislation. BUILDING STANDARDS DRAWINGS: However, the situation with building warrant drawings is different. There, there is no process of public engagement and the legislation sets out how the relevant drawings should be handled. It is not an issue of copyright as such, rather a requirement of the legislation. In essence the regulations state that the local authority shall make copies of any of the drawings available on payment of the appropriate fee. In certain circumstances where there are security implications, the drawings may not be made available at all without the written consent of the owner of the building and in the case of a residential building, can only be made available to certain interested parties. Because the relevant drawings can only be made available in certain circumstances, the council cannot publish these on its web-site where they would be available to anyone. Such action would be unlawful. Full details of these legislative provisions can be found in Regulations 57 and 58 of the Building (Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (SSI 2004, No 428). ----------------------
_______________________________________________ developers-public mailing list [email protected] https://secure.mysociety.org/admin/lists/mailman/listinfo/developers-public Unsubscribe: https://secure.mysociety.org/admin/lists/mailman/options/developers-public/archive%40mail-archive.com
