Chamber and committees

Private residential landlords in Scotland are required to register with their local authority under Part 8 of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland Act) 2004 and pass the fit and proper person test. One of the considerations in the fit and proper person test is whether the applicant has contravened any provision of housing law. Landlords have a duty to ensure that property they let meets the Repairing Standard and Tolerable Standard at the start and at all times during a tenancy.

Responsibility for enforcement of the Repairing Standard lies with the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber). Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service staff carry out the administration of that tribunal.

The First Tier Tribunal will notify the relevant local authority when an application for a determination on the repairing standard is received. It is the responsibility of the local authority to investigate and take any necessary action where standards are not being met.

Enforcement arrangements for all elements of the Repairing Standard are set out in the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006.

There are no new requirements for fire safety in the Repairing Standard.

There are currently no requirements for local authorities to report to Scottish Government on the Repairing Standard.

In the course of correspondence that the Scottish Government receives from the public and professional bodies on a range of matters, a few of those correspondence has highlighted the challenges of meeting some of the obligations that have come into effect from March 2024. Scottish Government officials are in contact where that is the case to explain the obligations and provide further clarification as may be required.

There are no new Repairing Standard requirements on fire safety.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-27429 on 4 June 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

In declaring a national housing emergency, the Scottish Government recognises that there are major challenges within the housing sector in Scotland. To address these challenges, joined up action across Scottish Government, UK Government, local government, registered social landlords (RSLs) and our full range of housing sector partners will be critical.

There is widespread support for Scotland’s long term plan for housing set out in the Housing to 2040 strategy, and for our collective plan to end homelessness set out in Ending Homelessness Together. So rather than diverting effort to the creation of a new action plan, it is our intention to work at pace in collaboration with partners to critically review and prioritise actions within these current plans. In doing so, we will focus on their impact and deliverability, linked to the First Minister’s priorities of eradicating child poverty, driving economic growth and investing in vital public services.

Yes. Colleagues from across a range of sectors assisted us to scope out the case for the creation of a Scottish Veterinary Service. This identified that a new Scottish Veterinary Service (SVS) would deliver quality improvements and would be financially sustainable. However, the current financial climate and significant budget constraints mean that we are unable to progress with plans for the SVS, given the significant costs to create the new service.

Statistics on the proportion of pupils with 90% or lower attendance are published by local authority and school sector in table 4.1 of the school attendance and absence statistics 2022-23, available here:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/school-attendance-and-absence-statistics/

The Scottish Government plans to publish these statistics annually.

The range of statistics published on attendance will be kept under review.

The Scottish Government is committed to the expansion of the free school meal programme and the next phase will support those in receipt of Scottish Child Payment in Primaries 6 and 7 from February 2025.

To support this expansion we have made provision for £43m of capital funding in 2024-25 to support the infrastructure development required to deliver the next phase of the free school meal programme. This is in addition to the £10m of capital funding provided in 2023-24.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with COSLA to deliver our free school meal expansion programme.

The Scottish Government is aware of the challenges around probationer allocations in certain geographical areas and in certain subjects. We are therefore currently considering how the Teacher Induction Scheme can better address these challenges.

I refer the member to the answer to S6W-27665, 4 June 2024, the designation of Hate Crime Advisors and Hate Crime Champions is an operational matter for Police Scotland. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

There are no reporting requirements on the rate and nature of non-crime hate incidents from Police Scotland to the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government is not aware of reporting requirements to any other public body.