Chamber and committees

On 25 March, the day on which the Scottish Parliament went into recess for our election, the UK Government announced that £1.5 billion was being made available for a discretionary relief scheme for businesses outside the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors. Scotland’s share of that funding was to be £145 million. By 16 July, a written answer to me showed that we still had not seen a penny of that money. Has there been any progress in releasing that money to Scotland? Many of our local businesses are still feeling the impact of Covid and need further help. Will the First Minister press the case until the matter is resolved?

What more can the Scottish Government do to offer assistance to businesses in my constituency that are still struggling to recover their customers and markets?

It is good to be back in Parliament alongside colleagues old and new from all parties. When the virus first emerged in Scotland early last year, I am sure that none of us thought that we would still be here around 15 months later debating the extension of the legislation. However, the reality is that the virus is still here and people are still losing their lives because of it.

In the past week alone, there have been more than 10,000 new positive cases in Scotland, and there were more than 2,000 just yesterday. Fifteen people have died as a direct result of the virus and more than 170 are in hospital.

Yesterday’s daily positive total was the highest since 15 January this year. That surely illustrates why this is a matter of great concern.

It is clear that we must agree to extend the provisions in the bill beyond September to continue the fight against the virus and to protect the public as best we can. What other choice do we have that offers greater protections for the public?

When I served on the previous session’s COVID-19 Committee, week by week colleagues would look at the provisions in the legislation and hope more than anything else that this would not last for as long as it has lasted. The then cabinet secretary, Mike Russell, attended our committee almost weekly, alongside Professor Leitch, to explain the proposals and to answer detailed questions from members about the impact of the virus on public health, our economy and people’s livelihoods. Hard decisions are never popular, and the bill’s timetable is far from ideal, but the lesson that we learned back then was that we have to act faster than the virus if we are to stay ahead of it and its increasingly transmissible variants.

As some members have said, the bill does not propose to confer any new powers, and it is good to see a number of provisions being dropped as we no longer need them. I hope that that pattern will continue as long as we get the figures in our communities down again.

Some protections will be extended if the bill is passed, one of which is the continued protection from eviction for private and social sector tenants. I was pleased to hear about the £10 million grant fund that is to be made available to help all those who are in arrears. With the exception of cases involving antisocial behaviour, criminality and abandonment of a property, tenants will continue to be afforded some protection from eviction during the critical times when the legislation applies.

I am grateful to Michael Clancy and the Law Society for their detailed briefing, which covers that topic in some depth. They recognise that the pandemic has led to many job losses and a reduction of income for many households in Scotland, with people unable to meet their financial obligations under their tenancy agreements. Although the Law Society supports the extension of the provision, it points out that landlords also need support to allow them to meet or to suspend their liabilities as a result of being denied the income that is not being paid to them by their tenants. I hope that the cabinet secretary might say something about that during his summing up.

Court hearings will continue to be held remotely if the bill is passed—the Law Society also supports that measure. There are a number of issues with participation in courts using digital technology, particularly if data links are not reliable and if evidence is not properly heard.

Like those in all other parts of Scotland, my constituents in Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley have suffered at the hands of the virus. For the very youngest to the most senior of citizens, family life and education have been disrupted, jobs and businesses have been lost and, worst of all, loved ones have been lost. There have also been some incredible stories of resilience, exceptional care for our fellow citizens and wonderful ingenuity that gives us hope that, even at this awful time in our history, we can see a better future on the horizon. Our Government is doing its best to lead us there as safely as possible. I hope that our people will not have too much longer to wait, but we must pass the bill at stage 1 to make sure that the journey to recovery is as safe as possible, and that it protects citizens to the maximum of our ability.

The economic shock of the pandemic has been compounded by the shock caused by the Tory Brexit disaster. What steps is the Scottish Government taking to mitigate the impact of Brexit on Scotland’s public finances?

The UK Government plans to end the job retention scheme in September. That will cause great concern for sectors of the economy that, for understandable reasons around stopping the spread of the virus, are unable to open. Can the cabinet secretary provide an update on the Scottish Government’s latest engagement with the UK Government on the issue?

Can the First Minister give an update on the take-up of vaccine registrations among over-18s in Ayrshire? What action is being taken to combat no-shows, given the recent increase in case numbers in parts of the county?

Can the First Minister provide more details on the £100 million digital boost scheme for small businesses and, in particular, the steps that the Government will take to promote digital innovation and digital accessibility, so that we do not lose the momentum on that that has been evident during Covid?

took the oath.