Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of reported fraud incidents committed against pensioner households. Some information is available from a 2018-19 study into police recorded fraud in Scotland, the findings of which were presented within the Recorded crime in Scotland 2018-19 National Statistics .

Further analysis from this study suggests that an estimated 1,260 crimes of recorded fraud (or 13% of all fraud that year) had a victim of pensionable age (specifically those aged 66 and over).

The Scottish Government’s Social Enterprise Strategy was launched in 2016 and sets out a wide-ranging, ambitious and long-term programme to develop the potential of Scotland's social enterprise sector.

The latest Social Enterprise Action Plan was published on 24th March 2021 and covers the period 2021-24 and is available at: Social enterprise: action plan - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

In 2021-22 we spent over £7M in supporting social enterprise and expect to spend over £6M in 2022-23. £15M was distributed through COVID support funds in 2021-22.

Funding is provided to third sector organisations, including social enterprises, from across Scottish Government portfolios and is not collated centrally.

The Scottish Government recognises that Social Isolation and Loneliness is a public health issue, which has been exacerbated because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and will continue to be affected by the ongoing cost crisis.

The Scottish Government wants to see an increase in pollinator friendly gardens as opposed to hardscaping of garden space in towns and cities. We place significant value on high quality blue and greenspace and play spaces. Addressing the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss requires a ‘whole of government’ and ‘whole of society’ approach. Everyone can play their part and the NatureScot ‘Make Space for Nature’ campaign provides practical tips for everyone in making space for nature, reverse nature loss and fight climate change.

Through our Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) we proposed draft new planning policies and proposals to expand blue and green infrastructure, biodiversity and natural spaces to make places greener, healthier and more resilient to climate change.

There are no local authority commissioned communal night shelters currently operating in Scotland and we are not aware of any congregate night shelters being operated by third sector organisations in Scotland.

We have worked closely with local authorities and third sector partners to end the need for communal night shelters in Scotland by scaling up rapid rehousing and Housing First, which was a key commitment in our Ending Homelessness Together action plan.

Given that some form of emergency accommodation will always be needed, since 2020 we have provided over £690,000 of funding to support local authorities and third sector partners to establish rapid rehousing welcome centres (RRWCs) in Glasgow and Edinburgh as an alternative to night shelter provision. RRWCs provide short-term, safe and self-contained rapid access accommodation alongside multi-agency services, with the aim being to support people at risk of rough sleeping to move on to more settled accommodation.

The Scottish Government is committed to deliver 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, of which at least 70% will be available for social rent and 10% will be in our remote, rural and island communities. This is backed by £3.6bn funding available in this Parliamentary term including support of up to £30 million for the continuation of the demand-led Rural and Island Housing Fund.

SMEs play an important role in the delivery of affordable homes in all areas of Scotland both as developing landlords, contractors and the wider supply chain.

No displaced people from Ukraine have been removed from accommodation against their will.

Our absolute priority is ensuring the wellbeing and safety of displaced people from Ukraine. The Scottish Government is working to ensure that there is temporary accommodation available in cities where people may arrive late at night. This, as well as the temporary nature of some of the hotel availability means that in some cases, people will be requested to move into other accommodation. The Scottish Government is working to support people to move into longer-term accommodation.

The full information requested is not held centrally.

However, some information is available at a Scotland level from published results from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS), which includes information on the proportions of time households have been on a housing list, by length of time category, including a split by current housing tenure of the household where sample sizes allow. This will include housing association lists as well as council lists, and include households who are already living in the social rented sector who are looking to transfer to another social rented home, as well as households looking to move into social rented properties from other housing tenures.

The 2020 household survey results are here (Tab 1_66 for length of time on a housing list), with results for earlier years 2016 to 2019 available on the Scottish Household Survey Data Explorer (Table 3.16d). The results on the proportions of time are based on households who have reported being on a housing list (which will include housing association lists as well as council lists), and exclude any households who have reported using choice based lettings where not already on a housing list.

The published Scottish Household Survey results also include information for each year on the total number and percentage of households and adults in Scotland who have reported to be on a housing list. Available figures on the estimated absolute number of households and adults are available for the years 2013 to 2019 on the Annual Report 2019 Excel tables (Tab: Chapter 3 – Housing, tables 3.17 and 3.18), and estimated absolute number of households only for the year 2020 on the Scottish Household Survey 2020 Results Housing Tables (Tab 1.60).

It should be noted that results of the SHS 2020 telephone survey are not directly comparable to SHS results for previous years as COVID restrictions prevented face-to-face interviews, which previous surveys used, and the change of mode could have affected the answers given. More information on this, and other methodological guidance, is available here . In addition, the figures for 2020 as well as earlier years will be subject to survey sampling variation.

The Scottish Government recognises more than ever, the importance of people with mental health problems getting the right help, at the right time and in the right place. We are committed to providing clear, comprehensive and accessible support for those with mental health needs.

Under The Adoption and Children (Scotland) Act 2007 local authorities have a duty to provide support to adult adoptees. If an adult adoptee or any other person affected by adoption requires support they should approach their local authority who are required to carry out an assessment and provide support to address any needs, including mental health, that are identified.

The 2022-23 Local Government Settlement of almost £12.7 billion provides local authorities with a cash increase of over £1 billion or 9.2 per cent compared to
‎ 2021-22, and it is the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocate the total financial resources available to them, including on support for adult adoptees, on the basis of local needs and priorities.

In 2020-21 NHS Mental Health Expenditure was £1.25bn. Through investment of £21m in 2021-22 in our Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults, including people affected by psychological trauma or adverse childhood experiences, we have made over 1,800 awards to community projects focused on prevention and early intervention. The Scottish Government is providing a further £15m in 2022-23.