Chamber and committees

I have one final question, convener. Kirsty McNeill spoke about this a bit earlier. As well as communities of place, the guidance on part 2 of the 2015 act referred to impacts on communities of interest. What evidence is there that community planning partnerships are identifying and engaging with those communities?

Good morning, panel. What are the main challenges faced by communities across Scotland and have they changed in the years since the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 was passed? We could talk about the Covid pandemic, for example. Also, looking ahead, what role could community planning partnerships have in supporting communities during the cost of living crisis? I put that question to David Allan first.

Minister, why do you think that extending the evictions pause is necessary and proportionate, given that landlords generally pursue eviction as a last resort and that precautions are already in place, such as the need for landlords to comply with rent arrears pre-action requirements?

Thanks for that, David.

I will move on a wee bit. We heard from the previous panel about the lack of data, but we have some data. Data is collected by the Improvement Service, which shows massive inequalities between communities in the same local authority areas, for example, in Glasgow, between Springburn and Maryhill, and Kelvinside and Jordanhill. Reducing inequalities is a core purpose of community planning. How successful has that been? Maybe David could kick that one off, seeing as he is still on my screen.

Peter, do you want to add anything?

Thank you very much for those answers, panel.

I will ask about inequalities. Data that has been collected by the Improvement Service shows massive inequalities between communities in the same local authority area; for example, between Springburn and Maryhill, and Kelvinside and Jordanhill, in Glasgow. Reducing inequalities is a core purpose of community planning. How successful has that been?

In my lifetime, I did not expect to see a war in Europe like the one that we have seen in Ukraine; I do not think that any of us did.

A year ago, Russia stunned the world by invading Ukraine in a horrific act of aggression. Vladimir Putin expected to extinguish a democracy. He believed that Russian forces would quickly overwhelm Ukraine. He thought that their immense firepower would prove decisive. He thought that the spirit of the civilian population could be broken. How wrong he was.

The people of Ukraine stood up in defiance against Russia’s tyranny. They have fought so bravely for their freedom. Even in the face of horrendous atrocities, brutal violence against innocent children and wicked acts beyond the usual horrors of war, Ukrainians stood firm. They refused to give in. Their valiant example has been an inspiration. Their courage runs from the top of the country to the ordinary people who have left their normal jobs and set aside their usual lives to pick up arms to stop Putin’s army.

President Zelenskyy has quickly become a fabled wartime hero worthy of being spoken of in the same sphere as greats such as Churchill and Montgomery. As well as rallying his own people, his speeches have rallied the nations of the world to help Ukraine. He will go down in history as a bold fighter for freedom and a strong leader who knew that his people could defeat the odds.

The valour of Ukrainian fighters has been awe inspiring to watch, but the tragedy that has unfolded on their streets is truly heartbreaking. War is always tragic, but the unnecessary, unprovoked and insufferable way in which the war in Ukraine has happened makes it far worse.

People have had their lives turned upside down. They have lost loved ones. Many have been murdered. Millions have fled, and those who remain must contend with a lack of food, clean water and electricity. The devastation across the towns and cities of Ukraine is hard to even put into words. The pictures are seared into our minds.

However, the resolve and resilience of Ukraine’s people is remarkable. They do not give up. They have endured. Many have come to this country to start a new life, joining the many Ukrainians who already live in Scotland and the United Kingdom. Last year, one of those inspirational Ukrainians, Zhenya Dove, joined Scottish Conservative members at the Scottish Conservative conference, at which she delivered a powerful emotional speech. She recently told my team this:

“Many Ukrainians have been welcomed to Scotland with open arms. We are deeply thankful for the Scottish hospitality shown to Ukraine and for the kindness of your hearts.”

She continued:

“It is important to all of us—to those still in Ukraine and to millions who were forced to flee their homes, because we are united as one by our belief in a brighter future, in our victory. We carry this hope wherever we go because it’s the cornerstone of our culture. It is equally important for those who are no longer with us. For entire generations who sacrificed their lives for our freedom and the right to proudly call ourselves Ukrainians today.”

Speaking at the launch of a celebration of Ukrainian culture this evening, she will say:

“Our songs are more powerful than the roar of their sirens. Our tales are more truthful than Russian propaganda. Our music calms us during wartime and our poetry inspires us to fight on. This is how we remain unbroken and undefeatable.”

I hope that Scotland will continue being a place where Ukrainians are most welcome and I hope that the United Kingdom continues providing the outstanding support that it has given President Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine throughout this crisis.

From the outbreak of the war, the UK has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies. The UK Government delivered £2.3 billion of military support to Ukraine last year, which will be matched or increased this year. That included 10,800 anti-tank missiles, five air defence systems, 120 armoured vehicles, explosive drones and more than 200,000 pieces of non-lethal military equipment. The UK has also helped by providing training for 11,000 Ukrainian troops, run by around 1,050 UK service personnel. Another 20,000 Ukrainian troops are expected to be trained this year.

The UK has issued 218,500 visas to help Ukrainian civilians come to the UK, speeding up support for those fleeing the conflict. More than £1.5 billion of economic and humanitarian support has also been provided to help the Ukrainian people. That figure includes loan guarantees to keep Ukrainian public services running and around £220 million in humanitarian aid for basic necessities. I also welcome the financial support that has been given by the Scottish Government and the further £1 million that it has announced today.

The UK has also led the way with tough sanctions against the Russian regime. On top of phasing out all imports of Russian energy, the Government has imposed the largest and most severe package of sanctions that Russia has ever seen, with more than 1,400 individuals and entities sanctioned and £275 billion of assets frozen.

I am proud of the UK Government’s response and the efforts of people across Scotland who have welcomed Ukrainians into their homes and hearts. The courageous reaction from the people of Ukraine has been an incredible inspiration, but this tragic war has come at a terrible cost. We can only hope that it will end soon with a crushing defeat for Russia and Vladimir Putin.

In principle, my party supports the idea of a deposit return scheme. If it was run efficiently, we would support it. International evidence shows that a scheme can work. Many countries already have an effective system in place, and the United Kingdom Government is bringing in a DRS across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Sorry?

A scheme can decrease the amount of litter in our streets, it can help to protect our natural environment and it should be easy to introduce a scheme in which people purchase a drink container and a deposit is returned when the product is recycled. Therefore, we would have been happy to endorse the scheme, but we cannot do so, because the SNP-Green scheme is headed for disaster, and there have been so many times in the past that the SNP-Green Government has taken something positive and turned it into a negative.

The current proposals for a deposit return scheme are very controversial. Businesses say that they are unworkable and that the likely impact of the scheme’s introduction, if the SNP and Greens push ahead, will be the loss of jobs and a severe hit to economic growth.

If members do not want to listen to us, they should listen to what small businesses are saying about the scheme. As reported recently in the press, one Glasgow-based brewer, Simple Things Fermentations, said:

“We’re far from assured and in fact feel pretty confident that the scheme will be a disaster.”

The brewer added that the scheme will

“result in small shops closing and a massive reduction in choice for Scottish people after August.”

That warning is from a brewer, but shops are issuing similar messages of caution. Glasgow’s Wee Beer Shop has said:

“Retailers need to purchase and install expensive equipment to process returns—something my business has no physical space to host—I literally have a wee shop. I also have concerns about the ability of small shops to manually process and store returns ... It will be far too costly for us to arrange the pick-up of empty containers.”

I spoke recently to a director of a small craft brewery in Glasgow who has now decided that he can no longer run his business due to the introduction of the scheme. It is not just businesses in Glasgow that will be affected; other businesses further afield have issued clear warnings about the scheme. Chris Jones, the co-founder of the international drinks company Paragon Brands, has said:

“there is a huge number of smaller producers who have simply taken the option to stop selling in Scotland. The complications and the cost and the complexity involved in setting yourself up for this scheme just mean that the commercial returns are not there.”

What has gone wrong here? Why are so many small businesses and local shops worried about the impact of the deposit return scheme? Why are they fearful of the damage that the scheme could cause, when it is something that everyone could support if it was run effectively? The problem is that the SNP-Green Government is rank rotten at communicating and engaging with the business community. The scheme should have been designed for small businesses; they should have been the key people round the table.

I know that I have gone past my time, Deputy Presiding Officer, so I will finish now. The funding that was announced yesterday came at the 11th hour. Finally, there was recognition of the huge costs that the scheme will place on businesses, but throwing money at the problem is not the same as improving the scheme. This is a shambles of a scheme, and I urge MSPs of all parties to vote against its introduction at this time.