Chamber and committees

My constituents Roseanna Clarkin and Lauren McDougall have a petition before the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee relating to complications that have arisen from the use of surgical mesh by the NHS. The Scottish Government has previously indicated that it will monitor the progress of the new British Hernia Society registry, to gather more information about the scale of the complications that have arisen from the use of mesh in hernia repairs. I previously submitted freedom of information requests to health boards across Scotland, and I got information from some health boards but not from others. We have the British Hernia Society registry, but will the cabinet secretary ensure that all health boards retain records on complications arising from the use of hernia mesh and that that information is made available to inform decision making?

Will the minister be addressing the concerning increases in response and call-handling times?

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report from the Scottish Funding Council stating that universities and colleges are in unsustainable financial situations, with some at risk of insolvency in the current financial year. (S6T-02699)

The report highlighted that 11 universities have underlying operating deficits. The University of the West of Scotland, which is in my region, is expected to post an £8.4 million deficit, which could result in more than 75 academic job losses, while senior staff who earn more than £100,000 get pay increases of more than 30 per cent. Does the cabinet secretary agree with calls from trade unions for greater transparency in financial planning for universities?

I press my amendment.

I will speak to amendment 309 and my other amendments in the group. Amendment 309 would require relevant bodies to ask individuals who they have reason to believe might be homeless or threatened with homelessness whether their situation arose as a result of either past or on-going experience of abuse.

Amendment 310 would define “abuse” under the definition that is outlined in section 43 of the bill, as conduct

“giving rise, or likely to give rise, to physical or mental injury, fear, alarm or distress”.

Amendments 311 and 312 would require the relevant body, where it is informed that a person is either homeless or threatened with homelessness

“as a consequence of ... having experienced or experiencing abuse”

to provide details of support to that person.

Amendments 328 and 329 were lodged after discussions with the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, which highlighted the need for greater security for victims of domestic abuse who may be left vulnerable to homelessness after ending a joint tenancy with their abusers.

Amendment 328 would allow a joint tenant who

“has experienced, is experiencing or is at risk of domestic abuse”

to end their interest in the tenancy

“without giving notice to each of the other joint tenants”.

The amendment, which would apply to registered social landlords, would require that, when a landlord receives notice under the provision, they

“must provide the tenant with details of such other support that may be available to the tenant in relation to domestic abuse”.

The amendment would address a gap in the law and similar issues, which I spoke to last week in relation to my amendment 293.

Social landlords are clear that they need such statutory footing in order to be able to implement their domestic abuse policies—I stress that amendment 328 relates to social landlords, not the private sector. I raised the issue at stage 2 and discussed it with the cabinet secretary and her predecessor. Given that the amendment relates to domestic abuse in circumstances in which the landlord accepts that there is or has been domestic abuse, a longer period than one week’s notice should not be required; one week’s notice is sufficient.

As I said, the provision in amendment 328 has been requested by social landlords. For example, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations said in its briefing:

“We strongly support amendment 328”.

It believes that the new section that the amendment proposes is needed for registered social landlords to be able to implement domestic abuse policies, which has been asked for by various campaigns.

Amendment 329, which also relates to social landlords, would require a domestic abuse policy to include the steps that can be taken to write off rent arrears where there has been domestic abuse.

I move amendment 309.

Much of the report focuses on further education colleges, which have historically been underfunded and more vulnerable because of their reliance on Scottish Funding Council grants. Unless the deficits are addressed, it is projected that there will be 667 full-time equivalent job losses. Will the Scottish Government respond to those pressures with greater investment in the further education sector?

The cabinet secretary seems to be saying that amendments 309 to 312 and 329 are not required, because the bill will require that landlords adopt a domestic abuse policy and that the rights set out in the amendments are likely to be included in such policies. Of course, those specific rights might be included, but they also might not be.

The purpose of those amendments is—as, indeed, the purpose of the bill should be—to ensure that those rights are definitely in law and that we are not reliant on individual social landlords up and down Scotland to develop their own policies that might or might not include them.

I very much hope that the amendments will be agreed to today, or that social landlords are listening and that they will ensure that such rights are put into any policies that are developed, because we have to ensure that individual tenants who are subjected to domestic abuse have those protections.

I welcome the fact that the cabinet secretary will come forward with regulations by Christmas to deal with what is in the first part of my amendment 328. She has indicated that she might have concerns about the second part of it and that she plans to come forward with regulations relating to the points that it raises. I would be grateful if I received an assurance from the cabinet secretary that she has the statutory basis for doing that and that the regulations will fully encompass the points that are being raised.

We need the law and the policy to give the necessary protections to those who stay at home when they are subjected to domestic abuse as well as to those who decide that they have to leave. The cabinet secretary has stated on a number of occasions, including in writing to me, that the Scottish Government’s position is that victims should have protections to be able to stay. Equally, we need to ensure that we have the housing rights in place for situations where victims who have been subjected to domestic abuse feel, for whatever reason, that they have to leave.

That is the scenario that amendment 328 attempts to deal with. It has been drafted to address a gap in the law that has been highlighted by many social landlords, many campaigners on the rights of women who have been subjected to domestic abuse, and those who work in the housing sector. I urge the cabinet secretary to look at the matter again. She has said that she will not be able to support the amendment, but I hope that, in any process, she will ensure that there are no gaps, because that is the issue that is being brought to me and many other members. My concern is that, because of the way in which the bill is drafted, it will not enable us to close all the gaps that clearly exist for women who are in this situation.

I apologise—I cannot take one.

I ask the Scottish Government to consider making a direct award under section 45 of the Subsidy Control Act 2022 in relation to that specific procurement exercise, and I reiterate the calls in Paul Sweeney’s motion for a national shipbuilding strategy in Scotland that recognises the strategic importance of shipbuilding to this country.

I congratulate Paul Sweeney on securing this important debate. The shipbuilding industry is of historic importance to many communities across Scotland, and it continues to play a significant part in our economy today.

The deal that has been secured by the UK Government with Norway to provide at least five frigates will bring jobs and continued work for Scotland’s shipbuilding industry. The deal follows on from other contracts secured from the Royal Navy by Scotland’s shipyards, including Ferguson Marine, which will be involved in fabricating components for HMS Birmingham.

There is still a clear need, however, for a comprehensive national shipbuilding strategy for Scotland, particularly when we consider the current position that Ferguson’s finds itself in as the Clyde’s last non-naval shipyard. Ferguson’s employs around 300 highly skilled workers and apprentices, and it has been a vital part of Scotland’s shipbuilding industry for more than a century now, delivering a third of the current CalMac Ferries fleet.

The yard is also vital for the local economy in Inverclyde; continued failure by the Scottish Government to deliver on the promised investment or to help the yard secure work is creating uncertainty about the yard’s future. Last year, the Scottish Government pledged to invest £14.2 million in modern equipment at Ferguson’s, yet only £600,000 has been invested so far, and procurement notices for new machinery have lapsed.

I would therefore be grateful if the minister could provide an update today on when the remaining promised investment will be delivered at Ferguson’s. The yard lost out on the CalMac order for seven small electric ferries earlier this year, not because of doubts about the quality of the yard’s bid, but because its bid was undercut on price. Concerns have been raised that social value was not considered—or was not considered sufficiently—in that decision, or indeed in other decisions that have been made. In other parts of the UK, the UK Government has now placed a minimum 10 per cent social value weighting element into the assessments of bids for shipbuilding contracts, and I support the points that Paul Sweeney made in his speech in that regard.

When I raised that very point with the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government last week, she said that social value weighting was already included in current procurement legislation. I would be grateful for clarity from the minister on social value being included in procurement and at least matching the 10 per cent minimum that is required in other parts of the UK, because we know that that has not been the case in previous processes.

I also made the case for direct awards last week, which is lawful for essential infrastructure such as ferries. I understand that the UK Government has written to Scottish ministers about extending UK procurement legislation to Scotland. It would be helpful if the minister could outline what engagement, if any, is taking place with UK ministers on procurement legislation, the ability to make direct awards and the ability to maximise social value in any procurement policies.

Last week, I urged the cabinet secretary to make a direct award to Ferguson Marine for the replacement of MV Lord of the Isles. That call is supported by the workers, unions, Ferguson Marine itself, businesses and the local community across the west of Scotland.