Local councils receive deluge of strange FOI requests

Members of the public have asked such questions as Scotland’s contingency plans in the event of an invasion by ISIS as well as a request asking how many crocodiles there are in Perth and Kinross.

Other requests concerned supernatural sightings and taxpayer-funded exorcisms.

In one case someone asked for details of local libraries where they could borrow a copy of the novel Fifty Shades of Grey.

Over 40,000 FOI requests were made of Scotland’s 32 councils, with the cost of releasing the documents totalling up to £3 million last year.

The most popular requests in 2014 were in respect of potholes, provision of public bathrooms and the number of funerals paid for by the taxpayer.

In addition, inquiries concerning dog fouling, parking fines, and council tax arrears were also common.

Eben Wilson, director of TaxpayerScotland, blamed councils for the spend.

He said: “Loony requests are probably a price that a well-functioning democracy has to suffer.

“Councils could help themselves by being more open to questioning and maximising transparency about what they do, especially the tax money they spend on our behalf.”

The number of FOI requests submitted to local authorities was also the subject of a FOI request.

The average cost of each FOI to the public purse was £88.