I was just about to say that it is remarkable to be heckled before one even says anything.

Indeed. I am meeting representatives from UNRWA tomorrow, and I will be happy to raise the issues that Mr Halcro Johnston raised in the second part of his question.

I am sure, Presiding Officer, that you would wish me to answer the question that has been put in relation to democratic infrastructure. Scotland has a long history of looking beyond its borders to trade, co-operate, learn, innovate and inspire. Our international engagement provides tangible benefits to our people, businesses and institutions. It also forms a key part of our commitment to being a good global citizen by making a positive contribution to addressing global challenges. Our people, businesses, universities and cultural organisations have long benefited from that collaboration and have made significant contributions globally.

Much of that has been captured in the “Building a New Scotland” series, the last of which is still to come, and I commend that to the member for Edinburgh Eastern.

I listened closely to Mr Stewart’s pre-scripted question. I hope that he is re-elected in the next session of Parliament. If that is the case, and if I am fortunate enough to be re-elected, I look forward to listening to questions from him that are not pre-scripted.

There are different customs and practices in different Parliaments. I am not currently reading an answer that has been prepared for me, as everybody can see. I am a strong believer that parliamentarians, whether in government or in opposition, should have the courage of their convictions and be able to make their case without necessarily reading something out at great length. If that is something that other members, including Mr Stewart, would like to start doing, I would look forward to that, too.

Scotland’s changing demographic composition, which in part is driven by deaths continuing to outweigh births, as shown in NRS statistics, has significant implications for our future economy, communities and public services. The Government remains committed to responding to that challenge through delivering our population strategy, which is overseen by the ministerial population task force.

With inward migration as the primary driver of our population growth, we continue to make a strong case to the United Kingdom Government for tailored migration solutions such as our rural visa pilot and the Scottish graduate visa to address Scotland’s distinct needs and ensure that we maintain and grow our working-age population.

That was an entirely sensible contribution from Willie Rennie. He will be aware that funding to the tune of £65 million has already been provided by the Scottish Government as part of the UK’s military aid for Ukraine programme, which helps provide state-of-the-art equipment, including sophisticated air defence systems and thousands of pieces of vital kit for Ukrainian service personnel.

Willie Rennie understands the point that some others do not, which is that aid is provided to Ukraine through different routes: direct military aid, humanitarian aid and other routes. Rules are in place, which depend on which organisation transports the aid and under which spending heading it is sent—in this case, it has been sent under overseas development aid. I can give Willie Rennie and others the assurance that we want to ensure that everybody in Ukraine gets the aid—civilian or military—that they require. We will consider such things very closely as a Scottish Government, because we support Ukraine in its fight against the illegal invasion by Russia.

The Scottish Government has increased funding for Museums Galleries Scotland from £2.7 million in 2024-25 to £4.27 million in 2025-26. Through that additional funding, not only has a new capital fund been created but MGS’s small grants fund will open to non-accredited museums for the first time. A brand-new museums capacity and support programme will also launch shortly. It will provide £4 million of Scottish Government funding to support museums across Scotland as they innovate and test new ways of working that will sustain those vital organisations for years to come.

Civilians in Gaza are being bombed and left to starve by Israel on a massive scale. The impact on women and girls is horrific, as the UN commission’s independent inquiry set out in such harrowing clarity. Women and girls in Gaza cannot by any stretch of the imagination be considered responsible for Hamas’s atrocities on 7 October 2023, which also included horrific violence against women and girls, as noted by an earlier report by the commission.

Scottish ministers have consistently called on the UK Government to end all licensed arms exports to Israel. The UK Government’s decision to suspend some arms licences was welcome, but it should go further. The UK Government Secretary of State for Business and Trade said:

“there is a clear risk that military exports to Israel, where used for military operations in Gaza, might be used in serious violations of international humanitarian law”.

For that reason alone, all licensed arms exports should stop.

That work is in progress. In answer to Foysol Choudhury’s question about on-going discussions on the situation in Gaza, I can confirm that, tomorrow, I am meeting the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. If UNRWA has specific asks about supplying aid to Gaza, I am sure that members across the chamber will be interested in learning about them, and I will be happy to share that information with members.

Foysol Choudhury will understand that the response to the situation in Gaza is mostly a reserved function. I wish that that was not the case—I wish that Scotland was able to impose an arms export ban, but we cannot. Therefore, I urge him to use his good offices to ask his colleagues in the UK Labour Government to do the decent thing and end all arms export licences to Israel.

Mr Fraser should be very careful about seeking to smear people in this country who believe that it should be a sovereign state. That position is held by the majority of people elected to the Scottish Parliament, and it is beneath the member to seek to smear a majority in Parliament, notwithstanding our differences on the issue.