FOI 26-092 Bolt Cutters
Freedom of Information Request
- Reference
- FOI 26-092 Bolt Cutters
- Request Date
- 19 Feb 2026
- Response Date
- 03 Mar 2026
- Information Requested
How many ambulances as a percentage of fleet currently carry bolt cutters or implements to break open padlocks? How many times has an emergency ambulance been impeded by a locked gate prohibiting immediate access to a patient in the previous 5 years?
- Response
The Scottish Ambulance Service can confirm that no Scottish Ambulance Service vehicles carry bolt cutters or padlock‑cutting implements.
The Scottish Ambulance Service does not hold recorded information that allows incidents or delays caused specifically by locked gates to be identified or searched.
While operational incidents and delays may be recorded in various systems, there is no specific data field or categorisation that captures whether access to a patient was impeded due to a locked gate/padlock. Identifying such incidents would require manual review and interpretation of individual incident records and free‑text entries, which would involve the creation of new information.
Under FOISA, authorities are not required to create new information or undertake complex analysis to answer a request. Accordingly, section 17(1) of FOISA applies as the information requested is not held in a recorded and retrievable form.
