Scottish journalists are woefully ignorant about one of the most vital tools given to them in almost 20 years, it has been claimed.

Speaking at the Society of Editors annual Scottish conference, Northcliffe Electronic Publishing editor and managing director Keith Perch said many journalists weren’t aware that the Freedom of Information Act (Scotland) would become law on January 1.

The act will enable reporters and the public to ask for all types of ‘recorded’ information held by thousands of Scottish public authorities, subject to certain conditions.

But Keith said: “Concerns over the act pale into insignificance compared with our own lack of preparedness. Our own ignorance combined with poor training and lack of commitment to get information means we are nowhere near ready.”

He said there was a total lack of training to use a “fantastic tool” to generate stories.

He said: “Although editors seem quite excited about the new FOI Act, I haven’t found a single journalist who knows anything about it.”

Keith Perch, with conference chairman Don
Martin and information commisioner Kevin Dunlon

One reason for the ignorance was a concentration on the ‘negative’ aspects of the law.

Keith told his audience: “We are experts in libel, we know what the law says we can’t write about before and during court cases, who can’t be identified for legal reasons in sex cases, and what the restrictions are when it comes to copyright or the naming of wards of court.

“But so little time is spent on the positives of the law.”

He also said reporters spent so much of their time filling news pages that few papers could spare staff to undertake proper investigations.

He said: “We expect so much more from our reporters now than we did 20 years ago. We just don’t have the time any more to investigate or ask more than the very basic questions.”

The fact public bodies have 20 working days to respond to a written request for information was a “lifetime” for most newsdesks and would render some stories obsolete while waiting for a response. The number of exemptions in the act – which includes any search likely to cost the public body more than £600 – would also be a hindrance to reporters, he said.

He added that as newspapers faced increasing competition from news websites and people searching for information themselves, it was vital the FOI Act was used as a tool to uncover exclusives few others would have the time or inclination to chase.

He said: “It’s another tool that we can use to add exclusivity to the mix that we offer. It will allow us to set the agenda that others will have to follow.”