| The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) have today made available a further 4000 government files which would previously have remained closed for 30 years. This follows the decision by Scottish Ministers to reduce the closure on ‘historical’ records from 30 to 15 years under The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).
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It is the third and final tranche of files to be released under
this initiative, containing government papers from the years 1989
to 1994. These latest releases reflect topics as diverse as the
closure of the Ravenscraig steelworks, proposals to ban the drinking
of alcohol in public places, introduction of the triple vaccine
for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), the evaluation of methadone
as a treatment for drug addiction, proposals to introduce Sunday
ferry sailings to the Western Isles, and the nomination of Glasgow
as European City of Culture. List of file to be released (Phase 3) - Acrobat PDF 2.52Mb
Other government files from this release phase are already in the
public domain as they were passed to NAS after FOISA was implemented
in January 2005. Those files reflect subjects as diverse as listeria
levels in blue cheese, and proposals for funding film production
in Scotland under the National Lottery.
Minister for Parliamentary Business Bruce Crawford said:
“This marks the third and final phase of a process that has opened up around 12,000 secret Scottish Government files. Thanks to the efforts of the National Archives of Scotland, more information than ever before on the vast range of subjects that Government manages is now available for public viewing.
“The release of these files demonstrates this Government's ongoing commitment to operating transparently - the key principle that underpins Freedom of Information legislation. Openness and transparency are essential parts of how this modern democratic government operates.”
George Mackenzie, the Keeper of the Records of Scotland, said:
“The final release of government information by Scottish Ministers brings thousands more government files into the public domain for the first time, adding significantly to the range of historical information available to researchers in the National Archives of Scotland.”
Two previous sets of files were released on 28 September 2009 and 14 January 2010 covering the years 1979 to 1988. Read more about the first tranche release and the second tranche release.
Using images of records from the 15th century to the 20th century, ‘An Open Secret’ shows how successive governments initially sought to keep information from the public gaze, while later recognising the need to satisfy increasing public demand for freer access. Read More about the ‘An Open Secret’ exhibition.
One of the exhibits is a Scottish parliamentary record from 1488 which gave rise to a medieval conspiracy theory. Read about the mysterious death of King James III.
Another concerns a futuristic 1930s high-speed monorail system, whose prototype was tested in Milngavie near Glasgow, but was never built commercially. Read more about the George Bennie Railplane.
One of the more mysterious concerns 1930s proposals to investigate the existence of the Loch Ness Monster and the need to provide police protection from hunting expeditions. Read more about Nessie.
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