Chamber and committees

I, too, thank Foysol Choudhury for lodging this motion for debate. There is no doubt that, in the 12 years that I have been an MSP representing the Edinburgh Pentlands constituency, housing—and, in particular, damp housing—has been the number 1 issue for my constituents.

Given the numerous cases that my staff and I have raised with the City of Edinburgh Council and Link PSL with regard to the condition of some properties in my constituency, including the Wester Hailes area, I welcomed the announcement in March 2021 that the council was piloting its new mixed tenure improvement service to upgrade all 1970s-built flats in Wester Hailes. That £30 million improvement scheme, which applies to almost 1,300 homes across 167 blocks of flats, is now well under way in the Murrayburn, Hailesland and Dumbryden areas. Work on each block includes repair or replacement of roofing, guttering, drying room facades, installation of external wall and attic insulation, as well as maintenance and decoration of the communal stairwells and closes.

Although most residents were pleased that the upgrade was happening, there was a large financial penalty for the 29 per cent of homes that were privately owned. Owner-occupiers were initially asked to contribute over £30,000, which many found was simply unaffordable and the only option available to them was to sell their home back to the council.

I was approached by several owners at the time and, by working with council officials, we managed to identify that substantial untapped funding for owners was available through the Scottish Government’s home energy efficiency programme grant scheme. We also highlighted to the council that, in comparison to other city councils, the loan period was too short and the interest rates were too high. The outcome was that the loan period was extended from 10 to 15 years and the interest rate was cut from 6 per cent to 4 per cent. The result was that my constituents saw their bills for the improvement work drop by at least 50 per cent.

Phases 1 to 4 have been completed, covering 484 flats and 18 houses, and those streets now look vibrant and modern with residents benefiting from warmer and more energy-efficient homes. The common areas between the blocks have yet to be upgraded but my understanding is that council plans are under way to further enhance the area with new play areas, upgraded landscaping and improved car parking.

Given the energy crisis of the past couple of years, it is important to measure how the energy efficiency measures are performing. Many residents have agreed to have Tinytag loggers installed in their homes to enable moisture and temperature levels to be measured and to track the energy efficiency of their homes.

The early indications of the energy efficiency of the refurbished homes are encouraging, with residents highlighting that their homes heat up quicker and stay warmer for longer, and that they do not need to have the heating on for as long or as often as they did prior to the works. There are also financial savings: one tenant said that she did not switch on her heating at all last winter and believes that she has saved about 80 per cent on her heating bills. The homes in the completed phases are now reaching an average EPC rating of B, which is equal to new-build standard and is higher than the current Scottish average EPC rating of D.

It is a hugely successful improvement programme that I believe should be not only replicated across my constituency but rolled out across all social housing in Scotland. I welcome the minister to his post. If he has not yet seen the improvements that are under way in Wester Hailes, I invite him to visit my constituency to see what can be achieved to tackle the issue of cold and damp homes.

To ask the Scottish Government, in the light of the recent analysis by the International Monetary Fund, which predicts that the United Kingdom economy’s performance in 2023 will be the worst among the G20 economies, what assessment it has made of the potential impact of this in Scotland. (S6O-02127)

The IMF’s analysis serves to underline the on-going detrimental impact that Westminster control continues to have on Scotland’s economy, and the people of Scotland are paying the price. Experts are now predicting that the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union is costing millions of workers £1,300 a year in lost income. Does the cabinet secretary share my concern that the Tories and Labour at Westminster seem determined to press ahead with imposing their disastrous Brexit on Scotland, no matter the economic consequences? Does he agree that the best way to ensure that our economy and communities can flourish is by rejoining the EU as an independent country?

I am just finishing. Sorry.

I hope that it will not be long before the other 900 empty MOD homes across Scotland will become available to the 600 homeless veterans and others who require a home. That will go some way to removing one of the barriers that are faced by Army personnel in their transition to civilian life and employment in Scotland.

My constituency of Edinburgh Pentlands has three Army bases within its boundaries, including Dreghorn, Redford infantry barracks and Redford cavalry barracks. In addition, we have Glencorse to the east and to the north the former Army headquarters at Craigiehall, which is currently lying empty.

I have visited the barracks in my constituency on a number of occasions, the most recent one being only a couple of weeks ago, when I met Aramark trainees and apprentices providing hospitality and housekeeping services at Dreghorn barracks. Many of its employees are family members of serving Army personnel, who ensure that Army families have a better standard of living until the time comes for them to transition into civilian life. It is no surprise that companies such as Aramark employ Army family members.

It was found in a recent report by the Army Families Federation, “Military spousal/partner employment”, that

“30% of employers said that military spouse/partners show resilience and determination and 22% said that they are willing to go the extra mile in their work.”

It is estimated that there are 100,000 veterans of working age, with their families, living in Scotland. The average age of those leaving the Army is 29. As a result, they will spend more of their life in civilian employment than in Army life. These are highly trained individuals, who have transferable skills that are often sought after by employers, not only in Edinburgh but across Scotland.

The Scottish Government’s programme for government committed to securing improved opportunities for veterans, and it accepted the recommendations within the Scottish veterans commissioner’s reports on employment, skills and learning, and on housing. That includes ensuring easier access to further learning and training, resulting in the Scottish Government providing additional funds to the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework Partnership to develop a skills recognition tool for use on the My World of Work website. That alignment of existing military skills and civilian qualifications should give veterans the best chance to compete for jobs when settling in Scotland.

Improved connections to the business community by the veterans employability strategic group has resulted in membership, for the first time, from private sector employers. That presents an important step towards bridging the gap between public sector policy, service delivery partners and employers—to the improved understanding of the benefit of employing veterans and to ensuring that they find suitable employment. It should also help to reach out to small and medium-sized companies as potential employers or as mentors to veterans who want to start their own business.

The Forces Families Jobs website is a central portal for employment and training opportunities for military spouses and family members. It was launched in 2019. All employers who advertise on that website have signed the armed forces covenant, and a profile is provided for each to explain their commitment to being forces family friendly. The Scottish Government continues to work with Forces Families Jobs to signpost vacancies by directing people to Work For Scotland, the Government’s own job website. In addition, large public employers, from the NHS to Police Scotland, have designated websites or recruitment teams to support the recruitment of veterans.

Many soldiers will face other challenges when they leave the service, but the biggest difficulty that is faced by veterans in Edinburgh, before they can even start to seek employment, is finding a home when they leave the forces. Despite Scotland having some of the strongest homelessness legislation in the world, and all local authorities having a legal duty to provide support to anyone at risk of homelessness, including veterans, there are still housing issues in some parts of the country.

The number of people who live in Edinburgh city has increased by more than 13 per cent, in recent years, which has put substantial pressure on housing waiting lists. During the period from 2007, the Scottish National Party Government invested £558 million in housing grant support in Edinburgh, which contributed to the completion of more than 13,000 affordable homes. Over the five years from 2021, Edinburgh will further benefit from the affordable housing supply programme’s investment of £234 million towards the delivery of even more good-quality affordable homes, which is an increase of £32 million—16 per cent—on the previous five years.

Despite that, the growth of the Edinburgh population is such that we need to make use of all suitable housing to help meet the demand. The MOD, as a landlord, owns hundreds of units of empty service family accommodation in Edinburgh and the Lothians. I have highlighted that issue, over many years, with all the individuals who have held the Westminster defence minister brief. Thankfully, at long last, the MOD has agreed to sell some of those empty properties to the City of Edinburgh Council, starting with an initial batch of 23 of the 78 homes that have lain empty over many years on the Dreghorn estate.

I remind members that I am the chair of the cross-party group on independent convenience stores.

The committee report has a focus on town centres, as well over half the population of Scotland live in our towns. Town centres should be the beating heart of our communities the length and breadth of Scotland, but our high streets have been changing in recent decades. Many chain stores, from Burtons to Woolworths, have been closing, leaving large vacant buildings that are difficult to let and soon become a blight on our town centres.

That trend was accelerated by the pandemic, when more people began shopping online. In December 2019, just before the pandemic hit, the online share of retail sales was 19 per cent. It rapidly rose to 38 per cent in January 2021 when shops closed during lockdowns and people avoided unnecessary social interaction.

In order to turn that around and put our town centres back at the heart of our communities, we need to tackle the large number of empty commercial properties by bringing them back into use, although not necessarily as retail units. The footprint of our main shopping areas has shrunk; where possible, buildings on the periphery could be converted into much-needed homes. That could also be the case with the empty storeys above shop units, which would bring people back to live at the centre of towns.

We need to increase footfall. Committee witnesses provided examples in which large empty retail units had been converted into gyms, health centres, council offices and college space, all of which had helped to bring people back into the centre of towns and supported retailers and hospitality businesses.

If we want to see town centres thrive again, we need to encourage the growth of independent retailers, support the creation of incubator units for start-up businesses and encourage social enterprises. In order for that to happen, landlords have to realise that long leases of 10 or 20 years are no longer acceptable to everyone because, in the current economic climate, no one wants to take on that risk. In the Westside Plaza in the Wester Hailes area of my constituency, the landlord has let one empty unit to the community wellbeing space, home to the community wellbeing collective. The collective is a group of 30 people who live in and are connected to Wester Hailes and who aim to enhance health and wellbeing, develop local action and create community cohesion in order to tackle the effects of poverty, social isolation and poor mental health.

One way of assisting all new tenants, and landlords of empty commercial properties would be for the UK Government to amend the VAT legislation. Depending on the nature of building work, and the purpose and VAT status of the client, VAT can be charged at 20 per cent or 5 per cent or can even be zero rated. That confusion can create a disincentive for anyone to invest in old buildings that are lying empty or abandoned and could be brought back into use.

In recent years, prior to the pandemic, the proportion of independent retailers across cities and towns was increasing, while the proportion of chain stores was decreasing. Post-pandemic, that trend is continuing. However, independents now have to compete with online retailers, which, in many cases, have lower overheads. In order to protect our town centres, we have to encourage bricks-and-mortar retailers to trade online in order that they can add additional sales from outwith their area, which would enable them to support their businesses to remain on the high street. Currently, 35 per cent of Scottish businesses have an online presence, but only 20 per cent of businesses believe that they have the skills that they need to trade on the internet.

The Scottish Government’s digital boost development grant was significantly oversubscribed, which highlights the support that businesses need to develop their digital skills. The pilot digital productivity labs need to be rolled out across Scotland as soon as possible to provide tailored support programmes to the retail sector. Evidence from Business Gateway indicates that Scottish businesses are still reluctant, and are not necessarily picking up the opportunities, which means that their digital maturity is not yet as evolved or developed as we might want it to be. Other witnesses highlighted that, although Scotland has 8 per cent of the UK population, less than 2 per cent of e-commerce jobs are located north of the border. Small businesses need that support now.

There is no doubt that retailing has faced many challenges in recent years, from the financial crash of 2008, to Brexit, to the pandemic. Brexit has resulted in staff shortages and a lack of goods from the European Union—or goods obtained at a higher price—but it is not all bad news. The good news for our town centres is that this Christmas, shoppers returned to the high street, because there were no restrictions on opening hours, as there had been in previous years. Online sales fell by 30 per cent from their peak, to a 27 per cent market share, partially due to postal strikes making deliveries uncertain.

For the five weeks to 31 December 2022, total retail sales in Scotland increased by 11.3 per cent when compared with December 2021. Even adjusting for inflation, those figures, sitting at 3.9 per cent, remain a positive. We need to take this opportunity to support our town centres to, once again, be at the heart of our communities.

It has been reported in the past week that, while most people are struggling to heat their homes, big energy companies are making record profits. Given that energy pricing is reserved, will the cabinet secretary urge the Chancellor of the Exchequer to tax share buy-backs, expand the windfall tax and scrap plans to raise the energy bill cap by a further £500 in April?

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to support that it can provide for households in Scotland, what recent discussions it has had with the United Kingdom Government regarding energy affordability. (S6O-01891)

The announcement will clearly come as a disappointment to communities and people who have campaigned on the issue over the years, but it is important to focus on exactly how this has happened. Can the minister confirm that the decision has been taken at a time of extreme financial pressures globally, that it is based on an assessment of value for money and that it is in line with HM Treasury’s “The Green Book” requirements, which ministers are required to follow.

I thank all the members who supported the motion in order that it could be debated tonight. In addition, I welcome to the gallery, from the National Robotarium, Stewart Miller, the chief executive officer, and staff and researchers; I am sorry that they have had to wait so long.

Last November, I visited the new £22 million National Robotarium, which is located at Heriot-Watt University Research Park in my constituency of Edinburgh Pentlands. It is a collaboration between Heriot-Watt University and the University of Edinburgh, and it is part of the £1.3 billion Edinburgh and south-east Scotland city region deal, which is funded by the Scottish and United Kingdom Governments. It is the largest and most advanced applied research facility for robotics and artificial intelligence to be found anywhere in the UK.

The state-of-the-art facility boasts high-specification laboratories with unrivalled technology and facilities. It is the only centre of its kind in the world that features laser labs, an autonomous systems laboratory and a living lab for trialling technology in a realistic home setting. It is dedicated to the development and testing of robotics and artificial intelligence solutions in three distinct areas: robotics and autonomous systems, human and robot interaction, and high-precision manufacturing. This centre of excellence aims, through research and knowledge exchange, to address real-world challenges and industrial needs, with a focus on hazardous environments, offshore energy, manufacturing, construction, healthcare, human-robot interaction, assisted living and agritech.

Why is it necessary? According to data from the 2021 “World Robotics” report, it is estimated that there are in the region of 3 million industrial robots in the world, which is a 10 per cent increase from the preceding year. Oxford Economics estimates that the figure is expected to increase to around 20 million industrial robots by 2030.

To remain competitive and grow our economy, the UK needs to increase productivity. However, that is at a time when the exodus of European Union labour as a result of Brexit has ensured that we have the second-lowest growth in the G20, just ahead of Russia, according to a forecast by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. One way of replacing that lost labour would be to invest in robotics, but an examination of the use of robotics in the manufacturing sector highlights how far the UK has fallen behind in using that technology.

The “World Robotics” report highlights that the world average number of robots in manufacturing per 10,000 employees at that time was 126. The UK had 101, which put it in 24th position in the global league table of robot densities. In comparison with other leading G7 economies, the UK was last; both Japan and Germany had nearly four times the UK’s robot density. The situation was even worse when the UK was compared with the leading countries of Korea and Singapore, as it had only 11 per cent and 17 per cent of their respective densities.

To start to address the shortfall in industrial robotic use, there needs to be a strategic policy that focuses on the ecosystem that is required to build a robotics sector in Scotland. That would highlight the way forward in education and skills; research and testing; a testing certification regime for robotics; and appropriate investment.

Another area that is facing similar challenges in recruiting and maintaining staff is social care. That is at a time when demand for the service is increasing, as people get older and health conditions become more complex. The UK population over the age of 65 is expected to increase from 12 million today to 17 million by 2035. A parliamentary office of science and technology briefing on “Robotics in Social Care” highlighted that robotics in social care

“can provide three types of assistance: physical, social, and cognitive”.

The briefing highlights that that “can take many forms”, including robots that have

“been developed to assist with ... feeding”

and “washing”.

It also mentions robots

“that remind users when to take their medicine and those that detect and prevent falls”,

and

“robots designed to provide companionship and assist with loneliness and social engagement”.

We need focused tax breaks from the UK Government to encourage investment in robotics, and in home-grown manufacturing in particular, so that such technology can help to address labour shortages.

In other countries, a rise in the adoption of robotic vacuum cleaners was observed during Covid-19. The need for disinfection and thorough cleaning at the same time as cleaning staff were off sick or in lockdown gave rise to the increased use of such vacuum cleaners. That technology proved so ideal that it is now estimated that there are 40 million robotic vacuum cleaners in the world, and the market is expected to increase by 23 per cent by 2030.

Scotland, unlike many areas of the UK, still has a manufacturing base, and the National Robotarium is in a position to move innovative products and services rapidly from laboratory to market, and to develop new prototypes and support early-stage product development within an incubator environment that drives productivity. The National Robotarium has already been instrumental in developing affordable solutions in health and social care. Researchers at the centre devised an artificial intelligence companion for people who are living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia that aims to aid memory recollection, boost confidence and combat depression.

Recently, a project that was supported by the National Robotarium was launched to improve robotic cancer surgery, with a probe being built to take mechanical measures of tumours and surrounding tissue, linked to software with intelligent algorithms for data collection. However, it is not just in healthcare that the National Robotarium is innovating groundbreaking solutions. Researchers are also involved in what is considered to be the world’s first autonomous wind farm inspection. Last summer, they supported EDF Renewables UK to deploy a remotely operated vehicle to carry out an inspection of its Blyth offshore wind farm off Northumberland, as part of a project between EDF and ORCA—Offshore Robotics for Certification of Assets—Hub.

We need to support our manufacturing sector to work alongside researchers from the National Robotarium to ensure that we can tap into the growing robotics sector as manufacturers, and not assemblers, of robots. Otherwise, we will not be part of the industrial revolution that is bringing good-quality high-tech employment opportunities to those countries that are already at the forefront of robotics development.