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“We have no further comment to make.”

It’s a statement that every journalist has received plenty of times.

Over the years investigating and reporting on Scottish education, both during and well before my time at The Herald, I’ve had variations of that statement from all sorts of bodies including councils, regulators, private companies, public organisations, and the Scottish Government.

The message between the lines is simple: we’re not answering these questions unless you find a way to make us.

Sometimes this is what you get in response to follow up questions after receiving an initial response to an enquiry; other times it comes when you try to challenge them for ignoring some or all of an initial query.

The latest instance – at least at the time of writing – involves the soon-to-be rebranded

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