ALEX Salmond has reported the Scottish Government to a data protection watchdog over details of sexual harassment claims against him appearing in the media.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent regulatory office responsible for ensuring data protection laws are upheld, confirmed it is examining concerns raised by the former First Minister.
It said: “Mr Salmond is happy for us to confirm he has raised a concern with the ICO and we are currently making enquiries with the Scottish Government.”
The news came two days after Salmond won a legal challenge against the Scottish Government. It admitted acting unlawfully while investigating sexual harassment claims against him. The allegations are strongly denied by Salmond.
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Confirmation of the ICO’s involvement also followed the Scottish Government’s announcement on Wednesday that a “detailed review” had found that no data breach had been committed. The review was carried out after Salmond wrote to the Government’s Permanent Secretary, Leslie Evans, in August last year, soon after the allegations were reported by a newspaper, calling for an investigation into what he described as the leaking of information.
The Scottish Government confirmed it was passing the review’s findings to the ICO.
A spokesman said: “The Scottish Government has never commented on the content of the allegations against Mr Salmond and we will not do so. As a precaution and in line with our legal obligations, we instructed a detailed review into our handling of Mr Salmond’s data.
“We are satisfied that information relating to this case has been processed in accordance with our legal and information handling obligations, and that there is no evidence of any data breach. We are in the process of sharing this information with the Information Commissioner.”
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