Chamber and committees

You cannot say “planning”, because that has already been done.

That takes me nicely on to the challenge of identification. People who work with our young people are obviously very good at picking that up—but not always. We have considered that, if children and young people do not self-identify because they are afraid of stigma, or for whatever reason, the compulsion is on local authorities to do so. They are told, “There are kids there, and you are not taking care of them,” but how do you identify them? That is a concern.

Good morning, ministers. I will finish the questioning on what the Government is currently doing, and I will then look at the definition of disabilities with regard to the Equality Act 2010.

You have given us a clear indication of the work that the Government is already doing to address the issue of disability transitions for our young people and children. Can you put on record whether there is anything else going on of which we should be aware? You have been quite thorough, but I want to make sure.

I was interested to hear about the principles into practice pilot. You indicated that the initial report on that is coming out soon. Is there any emerging indication or evidence of the impact? We heard earlier this morning that it is looking pretty positive, but I wondered whether there was any further information on that.

You have given some great examples and have talked us through it. I sense no overwhelming feeling from you that the legislation would guarantee any better outcomes. That is clear.

One quick question—well, maybe it is not quick, but you can try—is this: which aspects of the bill as it is at the moment would you change?

Good morning, cabinet secretary. I will continue on the theme of workforce planning. I am interested in getting a bit of insight on the communications that you might or might not have had with the teacher workforce planning advisory group and consultations that might have occurred regarding that 3,500 figure. It would be good to know about that.

Okay, so that is how the initial teacher education programme intake is determined—I get that. Is there capacity in ITE courses to meet the Government target?

Scotland is introducing a deposit return scheme that, by definition, applies the polluter-pays principle, which means that people are economically incentivised to recycle rather than to waste. When someone buys a drink in a single-use container, they will pay a 20p deposit, which they will get back when they return their empty bottle or can. I remember doing that in the past with my wee ginger bottles.

The scheme will help to tackle climate change, increase the quantity and quality of materials that are collected for recycling and decrease the amount of litter. In Europe, 10 countries—including Croatia, the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Norway and Sweden—have already implemented deposit return schemes, with significant positive results.

My Glasgow Kelvin constituency has the second-highest number of businesses in any constituency in Scotland, so I understand and have listened to the concerns, including those from many small shops and hospitality venues. I note that hospitality businesses that sell drinks only for consumption on the premises do not need to charge a deposit to consumers or operate as a return point.

Brexit, the pandemic and, now, the cost of living crisis have combined to make life very difficult for such businesses. I am assured that the Scottish Government recognises that and provides significant support. That includes the unique non-domestic rates package, which will continue to result in many SMEs paying no rates in the coming year and will mean that rates will be frozen for those who pay them.

It is essential that businesses can participate in the deposit return scheme with confidence. Under the scheme, retailers will be paid the highest return handling fees among comparable schemes anywhere in the world. The scheme will also deliver a cleaner environment for their customers, support their vital contribution to Glasgow’s 2030 net zero commitments and meet their customers’ aspirations for more sustainable lifestyles.

I welcome the news that Circularity Scotland has announced £22 million of funding to support measures that respond significantly to the concerns of industry. The measures include the removal of day 1 and month 1 charges for all producers, the provision of two-month credit terms, and changes that simplify and reduce the costs of branding requirements.

We must resolve any outstanding issues urgently, because we cannot afford further delay. The scheme was initially due to be introduced in April 2021, and it is estimated that the delay has so far resulted in more than 2 billion empty drinks containers that would otherwise have been recycled being discarded as litter, sent to landfill or incinerated. That represents 380,000 tonnes of entirely avoidable carbon emissions over that period.

When Scotland introduced its world-leading legislation on minimum pricing of alcohol, some big producers in the drinks industry invoked a lengthy delay, despite the cross-party support for that policy in the interest of public health. Ten years on, a report by Public Health Scotland confirms that minimum unit pricing had no economic impact on the alcoholic drinks industry in Scotland.

I trust that the Scottish Government will continue to listen and respond to the concerns from retail and industry. We must move forward with the deposit return scheme with the urgency that the climate emergency demands.

I do not.

Thank you very much. You said that decision makers had to act. I think that you have already responded to my colleague Pam with some of the actions that the Scottish Government could take. I want to widen that out a little bit and ask about the areas that you are prioritising and how they fit with the Scottish Government’s priorities. Do you think that that is a good fit, or are there areas that the Scottish Government should look at that would align with your priorities? Ramiza first, please, if that is possible.

No problem at all. I will break it down. One bit was about your priorities—the things that you are looking at—and how they fit with the Scottish Government’s priorities, and whether you think that that is a good fit or that the Scottish Government could do things differently.