Freedom of information requests reveal `secret` Named Person meetings

[Leslie Scott]

"A year ago this week, in an effort to address the concerns raised by the UK Supreme Court over the Named Person scheme, education secretary John Swinney announced a three month period of "intense engagement" with practitioners, public agencies, third sector organisations and members of the public, including parents and children and young people, but not those opposed to the scheme.."

"Crucially, the commissioner `accepts that there was a deliberate decision to create meeting summaries instead of formal minutes for the meetings relating to the information sharing provisions of the Named Person policy`. The views of one person who participated in the "intense engagement" regarding the meeting summary are included in the commissioner’s decision... "

"This situation is most unsettling. It is clear that a major government engagement programme was conducted without detailed records being kept of the responses. It is furthermore apparent that the "meeting summaries" omitted some negative comments and thereby altered the content of the only record towards the government position."

"Of even greater concern is the scope of the meetings that are going unrecorded. It seems that vast amounts of government business is being done in secret."

"Specifically, interactions with major charities, agencies and organisations - whom the public believe to be independent of government - are going unrecorded. What does this mean for transparency in government? What does it mean for the freedom of information? What does this mean for citizen oversight?"


Read more at http://thirdforcenews.org.uk/blogs/named-person-legislation-isnt-transparent#mTtPXRHzOuuMZsQ8.99