Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018

85 Information-sharing

(1) The Scottish Ministers may require a person mentioned in subsection (2) to supply information held by the person to the Ministers for the purpose of a social security function.

(2) The persons are—

(a) a local authority,

(b) a Health Board constituted under section 2(1)(a) of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 or a Special Health Board constituted under section 2(1)(b) of that Act,

(c) an integration joint board established by order under section 9 of the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014,

(d) the Registrar General for Scotland,

(e) the Keeper of the Records of Scotland,

(f) the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service,

(g) a person specified in regulations made by the Scottish Ministers.

(3) Where information is supplied to the Scottish Ministers under subsection (1) for use for any purpose, they may use it for any other purposes for which information held by them for that purpose may be used.

(4) In subsection (1), references to information held by a person include information held by another person providing services to the person.

(5) Information held by the Scottish Ministers for the purpose of a social security function may be supplied by the Ministers to a person mentioned in subsection (2) for use for the purposes of such function of the person as is specified in regulations made by the Ministers.

(6) Where information is supplied to a person under subsection (5) for use for any purpose, the person may use it for any other purposes for which information held by the person for that purpose may be used.

(7) In subsection (5), references to information held by the Scottish Ministers include information held by a person providing services to them.

(8) Information supplied under subsection (5) must not be supplied by the recipient of the information to any other person without the authority of the Scottish Ministers.

(9) This section does not permit or require the provision of information in breach of a prohibition or restriction on the disclosure of information arising by virtue of an enactment or rule of law.

(10) In this section, “social security function” means a function of the Scottish Ministers under or by virtue of this Act.