Sandeel Fishing Consultation: Data Protection Impact Assessment

3. Description of the project and personal data

3.1 Description of the work

In June 2023, the Marine Directorate of the Scottish Government launched a public consultation seeking views on proposals to close fishing for sandeel in Scottish waters. The work is jointly managed by the marine species team and international fisheries team. A risk register is used to help monitor concerns regarding the project, and biweekly meetings are held to discuss work and any issues that may be arising. Impact assessments are being carried out to ensure all procedures are followed.

The consultation asked six questions, which were:

1. Do you support the preferred option to close fishing for sandeel throughout all of Scottish waters?

2. If your answer is “no” or “unsure” to question 1, do you have any views on alternative or complementary measures that could be considered in the longer-term for the protection of sandeel in Scottish waters (please see the SEA Environmental Report for alternatives)?

3. Is there any further evidence that should be considered in terms of the potential benefits or value of the preferred option that could be considered?

4. Is there any further evidence that should be considered to demonstrate any impact on island communities?

5. Do you have any comments on the assumptions made in the partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments (BRIA) concerning the costs and benefits of the option?

6. Do you have any comments on the SEA Environmental Report?

The consultation was be hosted on Citizen Space, the Scottish Government’s digital platform for consultations, and published on the Consultation Hub, enabling people to submit their response online. Citizen Space is managed by the Scottish Government’s Digital Engagement Team. Consultations are also published on the Scottish Government website, enabling people to email or post a response to the relevant policy team.

3.2 Personal data to be processed

Variable: Name and/or organisation name

Data Source: Citizen Space (online responses), Respondent Information Form (emailed responses), Emails

Number of data subjects (people): Approx. 11,000

Categories of data subjects: Individuals, organisations

Data subjects relationship to controller: Stakeholders, interested parties, public sector service users, international parties

Variable: Email and/or postal address

Data Source: Citizen Space (online responses), Respondent Information Form (emailed responses), Emails

Number of data subjects (people): Approx. 11,000

Categories of data subjects: Individuals, organisations

Data subjects relationship to controller: Stakeholders, interested parties, public sector service users, international parties

Variable: Whether a person is responding on behalf of an organisation, or issuing a response as an individual (if respondent is from an organisation, they are asked the type of organisation – retailer, public sector, manufacturer, etc.).

Data Source: Citizen Space (online responses), Respondent Information Form (emailed responses), Emails

Number of data subjects (people): Approx. 11,000

Categories of data subjects: Individuals, organisations

Data subjects relationship to controller: Stakeholders, interested parties, public sector service users, international parties

Variable: Any personal data included in the free text response.

Data Source: Citizen Space (online responses), Respondent Information Form (emailed responses), Emails

Number of data subjects (people): Approx. 11,000

Categories of data subjects: Individuals, organisations

Data subjects relationship to controller: Stakeholders, interested parties, public sector service users, international parties

3.3 How this data will be processed

During the data collection process, all respondents were asked to provide information about themselves, either via the Citizen Space online platform or by completing the Respondent Information Form (RIF) if submitting a response via email.

The RIF asks respondents to state their publication preference as follows:

The Scottish Government would like your permission to publish your consultation response. Please indicate your publishing preference:

• Publish response with name
• Publish response only (without name)
• Do not publish response

If individual respondents do not answer this question, the default position is not to publish their response.

If organisation respondents select ‘do not publish’ or do not answer this question, the organisation name may still be listed as having responded to the consultation.

Respondents are also asked to indicate whether they are content to be contacted again in the future by the Scottish Government in relation to this specific consultation exercise.

Analysis of responses

Responses will be analysed externally. A contractor was selected through a tender process, which included questions on how personal data – including sensitive data and data on protected characteristics – would be processed and handled. This includes thorough data protection training for staff, password protection for files used, anti-virus software on all machines, and automatic updating of devices.

Publication of responses

Following the close of the consultation, an outcome report will be published online. Responses will be published alongside this, where permission has been given to do so. The aim of this is to evidence the independent and robust analysis of the consultation responses that help to shape the policy surrounding sandeel fisheries.

Responses will be published in accordance with respondents’ expressed publication preferences (see above). Before publication of responses, they will be checked for any personal data included in the free-text response to the consultation question, and any personally identifiable information will be removed.

Where respondents have given permission for their response to be published, with or without their name, and after the Scottish Government has redacted any defamatory content, consultation responses will be published at Consultation Hub. The data being published is an opinion provided by members of the public at a set point in time, and therefore will not require being checked for accuracy or being kept up to date.

Retention of data

Responses will be stored in eRDM, and retained in line with the SG retention policy. As our policy dictates, a review will be carried out after 1 year to decide whether data still requires to be retained, and if there is no rationale to justify continuing to hold the data it will be destroyed. If data continues to be held, reviews will be held annually.

3.4 The purpose/purposes of the processing

The purpose for processing this data is to gather opinions on proposals to close fishing for sandeel in all Scottish waters, and to use these opinions to help develop policy.