As the lead public body for heritage in Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland published “Our Past, Our Future: The Strategy for Scotland’s Historic Environment”. One of that strategy’s key priorities is delivering the transition to net zero. It sits alongside HES’s climate action plan, which spans until the end of 2025 and details how to tackle the causes and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Climate change does not only affect sites in Scotland, but Historic Environment Scotland is among the first to proactively tackle those issues.

The Scottish Government provides significant support to the museum sector and will continue to do so. For example, we have given cultural bodies, including National Museums Scotland, a funding uplift in 2024-25. We continue to support the national development body for Scotland’s museum sector—Museums Galleries Scotland—and we have committed to provide an uplift of £800,000 to the V&A Dundee, despite the Scottish Government’s challenging 2024-25 budget position. I am pleased that our investment continues to support our museums and world-class collections, ensuring that they are cared for and enjoyed by everybody across Scotland.

I thank Murdo Fraser for raising the issue. I am very pleased that Perth museum will reopen on 30 March after a significant redevelopment project. Alongside the stone of destiny, the museum houses the Perth and Kinross collections, which are recognised as being of national significance, and is situated in one of Scotland’s heritage buildings.

As Murdo Fraser knows, Perth museum will be managed in partnership with Perth and Kinross Council and Culture Perth and Kinross. The project was supported by the Tay cities region deal, which received funding from the Scottish Government, alongside other partners, including the UK Government and regional partners.

As I mentioned, the Scottish Government continues to provide funding to the national development body for Scotland’s museums sector, MGS, which provides valuable strategic investment, advice, workforce development and advocacy.

Our international development portfolio takes human rights-based approaches to advance the rights of marginalised groups very seriously. Key themes include health, inclusive education and equality, in alignment with the priorities of our partner countries and United Nations sustainable development goals.

Our recently launched £3 million women and girls fund will directly support women and girl-led organisations to advance gender equality and promote the rights of women and girls in our partner countries. Our education programming seeks to improve access to education for women, girls and disabled children. In health, our non-communicable diseases work aims to expand equitable access to safe and quality care.

The member raises a very important point. I encourage anyone who is interested in applying for the various funding streams—there are many organisations involved in that field—to continue their engagement. If there are specific organisations that need assistance, I encourage the member to ask them to get in touch with me.

Women remain underrepresented in the creative industries and are disproportionately in lower-level positions. The sector is known for unpredictable freelance work, which makes participation in it difficult for women with caring responsibilities, health conditions or disabilities.

The Scottish Government is committed to fair work first, including taking action to tackle the gender pay gap. We are establishing a culture fair work task force, which will provide recommendations on further implementing fair work, which is crucial to achieving greater diversity.

Creative Scotland has produced a wealth of resources for employers and freelancers, including illustrated guides, to support better working practices.

We want to increase opportunities for everybody, from every background, up and down the country. I am happy to meet Beatrice Wishart after this session to listen to her suggestions.

The creative industries are an important growth sector, and the number of people that the sector employs is forecast to grow by 4 per cent by 2026. The workstreams that are outlined in the recently published “A Culture Strategy for Scotland: Action Plan” aim to develop the conditions for inclusive growth of the sector. Aligned with the priorities in the national strategy for economic transformation, those include promoting fair work, developing a strategic approach to skills and publishing our international culture strategy, which will support the international ambitions of the sector and ensure that such activity plays a full role in its long-term development.

I recognise the enormous impacts that our creative industries make on our economy, our social health and our wellbeing. There have been communications regarding the tax breaks that can be offered. I wrote to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport asking for permanent tax relief for our orchestras, theatres, museums and galleries, so I welcome the announcement on that.

Screen Scotland has advised that the visual effects industry tax credit increases could be positive and significant, as they will allow the United Kingdom to keep more work in the United Kingdom. It could be an incentive for London-based companies to grow their UK-wide presence, including in Scotland.

Collette Stevenson is quite right to raise the effects of Brexit. It has had, and continues to have, a devastating impact on the sector. Freedom of movement throughout Europe supported Scottish artists’ international mobility, and the creation of costs and administrative barriers post-Brexit makes international working increasingly difficult.

I agree that we would be better placed to grow our creative industries as members of the EU. I wrote to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lucy Frazer, on 5 March, outlining positive steps that could be taken in the spring budget, including seeking talks with the EU about rejoining the creative Europe programme.

The Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture also wrote to the Home Secretary on 7 March, raising concerns about the Home Office’s handling of visa applications for creative professionals. A meeting of the interministerial group on culture is planned for later in the year, and I expect EU engagement and mobility to be discussed.