Chamber and committees

Does Stephen Kerr agree that one of the positive ways in which we can remember the Holocaust is by all members and political parties endorsing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism? Until all parties in Scotland do that, there will always be a black mark against us.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I—[Inaudible.] I would have voted yes.

Since 23 December, there has been a moratorium on fertility treatment for unvaccinated women, which has cross-party support. However, will the First Minister explain to my constituents why that moratorium is required and when it will be reviewed?

I do not know where the cabinet secretary’s officials shop, but I have just checked and every B&Q in Edinburgh has no availability until after the relevant date. Perhaps the cabinet secretary could ask officials where they shop.

I am interested in the cabinet secretary’s definition of “a bit more time” and “reasonable time”. What do they mean in practice? Is it days, weeks or months?

One of the few positives to come out of the pandemic is that flexible working from home has become more mainstream. It suits many disabled people. Will the minister commit to engaging with employers and reporting back to Parliament on how we can continue to foster that inclusive working style post-pandemic, while taking into account issues of isolation, loneliness and social participation?

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to farming charities. (S6O-00611)

Farmers and those who work in the agricultural and rural sectors have experienced great difficulty with mental health and loneliness throughout the pandemic. Lockdowns and self-isolation have added to those difficulties. The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution’s “The Big Farming Survey” has revealed that 35 per cent of the entire farming community have described themselves as “probably” or “possibly” depressed. The figure for women in agriculture is higher, at 43 per cent. What will the cabinet secretary do to support farmers and farming charities to deal with the mental health crisis in our rural communities?

I think that the minister would recognise that the countries in Europe that he is talking about have a very different housing market from ours in Scotland.

The biggest issue that we face is that, if we go for rent control, landlords who have only one or two flats will simply sell them. That will take them off the market and those who are looking to rent will have less choice rather than more choice. That, in economic terms, means that rents will go up. Of course, there will be short-term benefits for renters if the proposals go ahead. However, they are minimal and will be dwarfed by the costs for future renters.

I would argue that none of this is controversial. An economist from the left-leaning Brookings Institution in America stated that

“Rent control appears to help affordability in the short run for current tenants, but in the long-run decreases affordability”,

makes negative extremes and affects surrounding neighbourhoods in a way that no one would expect. I would suggest that, if we go down the way of rent controls, that is what would happen in this country.

Yes, we need to fix the problem that has been created over the past 14 years. Scotland would be better served by the Scottish Government if it focused on meeting its targets for new houses built, a measure that would effectively bring prices down and ensure that there was enough accommodation for everybody to have, instead of trying to fix the market.

There can be no doubt that, as others have said, Scotland is facing a difficult period with regard to the housing market. Here, in the Lothians, it can be seen starkly as rents rise and the number of available properties falls. Something has to be done to address the problems, and I put on the record my and my party’s willingness to work with anyone in this Parliament on reasonable measures.

However, we must be careful about what constitutes a reasonable measure. We must not allow ourselves to fall into the trap of thinking that doing something is the same as helping. We must not allow ourselves to be seduced by the easy option of measures that will help in the short term but wreak untold damage in the future. It is incumbent on the members of this Parliament not to be short sighted but to see beyond dogmatic convictions and consider the consequences of legislation beyond the current five-year session of Parliament.

The Government’s so-called new deal for tenants is not the revolutionary legislation that it would have the country believe. It is a package of old, tired and previously unsuccessful policies that define the concept of a short-term fix at the expense of future generations.

My colleagues in the Green Party like to talk about the settled science. I am afraid that, when it comes to rent controls, the verdict is in—and they do not work. Mr Rennie asked for evidence of why we are going down this road. It is not as though we do not have example after example from around the world of rent controls having been implemented and having failed to fix the problem of affordability.

I will press the cabinet secretary. If alarms are not fitted by the appropriate time, there will be home insurance issues. What conversations has she had with home insurers about whether policies will be valid? When will it be decided that the reasonable period has ended? The Government must fix a date at some point—or is it unwilling to make the decision?