Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003

279 Information for research

(1) A person having functions by virtue of this Act shall, on being required to do so by the Scottish Ministers—

(a) provide them or any other person specified in the requirement with such relevant information as is so specified; and

(b) do so in any such form as may be so specified.

(2) The Scottish Ministers may, under subsection (1) above, require the provision of relevant information only if, in their opinion, it is needed by them (or, as the case may be, the other person specified in the requirement) for research purposes within the meaning given by section 33 of the Data Protection Act 1998 (c. 29) (research, history and statistics).

(3) Information need not be provided under this section if, were it evidence which might be given in proceedings in any court in Scotland, the person having that evidence could not be compelled to give it in such proceedings.

(4) Where information required under subsection (1) above—

(a) is, or refers to, information about a natural person and would identify or enable the identification of the person; and

(b) can reasonably be provided under subsection (1) above so as not to identify or enable the identification of the person,

it shall be so provided.

(5) Where—

(a) the person required under subsection (1) above to provide the information is under a duty of confidentiality in respect of that information; and

(b) the person cannot provide the information without breaching the duty,

the information shall not be provided unless the person to whom the duty is owed has consented to its provision.

(6) On receipt of information provided under this section, the Scottish Ministers (or any other person provided under this section with the information) may, for the purposes referred to in subsection (2) above, do any, or all, of the following—

(a) process the information;

(b) collate it;

(c) publish it or reports based on it.

(7) Regulations may provide as to the procedure to be followed in making requirements under this section for information and in providing it.

(8) Where information recorded otherwise than in legible form is required to be provided under this section, it shall be provided in legible form.

(9) For the purposes of this section—

(a) information is “relevant” if it is information as to the operation of this Act; and

(b) a person is under a duty of confidentiality in respect of information although the person could notwithstanding that duty be compelled to give evidence as to that information in proceedings in a court in Scotland.