Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid)
Meeting date: Thursday, September 9, 2021
Official Report 1198KB pdf
Contents
- General Question Time
- First Minister’s Question Time
- Mineworkers Pension Scheme
- Portfolio Question Time
- Deaths of John Yuill and Lamara Bell
- Covid-19 Vaccine Certification Scheme
- Parliamentary Bureau Motion
- Decision Time
Portfolio Question Time
Social Justice, Housing and Local Government
Good afternoon, colleagues. I remind members that social distancing measures are in place in the chamber and across the Holyrood campus, and I ask that members take care to observe them, including when entering and exiting the chamber. Please use the aisles and walkways only to access your seat and when moving around the chamber.
The next item of business is portfolio questions; the first portfolio is social justice, housing and local government. I remind members that questions 5 and 7 are grouped and that I will take supplementaries on them after both have been answered. Moreover, if a member wishes to ask a supplementary question, they should press their request-to-speak button or enter the letter R in the chat function during the relevant question.
Finally, in order to get as many members in as possible, I ask again for short and succinct questions and answers.
Social Enterprises (Support)
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the growth of social enterprises and other not-for-profit community enterprises. (S6O-00107)
The Scottish Government’s social enterprise strategy, which was launched in 2016, 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 24 March this year and covers the period from 2021 to 2024.
It has been highlighted in conversations with community groups that many of the available funding packages are project based instead of being intended for expanding or building on existing initiatives. Will the cabinet secretary comment on the thinking in those groups that they are not deemed sufficiently innovative for one of the funding streams if they want to expand or that they are not eligible for others because the project in question is not new?
I can write to the member with more details, but I would point out that First Port Scotland delivers Scotland’s national social enterprise start-up incubator on behalf of the Scottish Government via the social entrepreneurs fund. It helps not just to start social enterprises but to develop and grow their ideas, and more information about that is available on the website.
We are looking to continue to fund social enterprises so that they continue to deliver. Beyond the funding package that was delivered during the Covid period, we are continuing to fund social enterprises, and there is an additional £1.5 million to build on the successful programme of support offered through the adapt and thrive programme, which helps community organisations that want to diversify their income. I am happy to write to the member with a bit more detail, particularly on his point about growing social enterprises.
Gypsy Travellers
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with its joint action plan with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, “Improving the Lives of Scotland’s Gypsy/Travellers (2019-2021)”. (S6O-00108)
First, we welcome Ms Whitham’s interest in this area, which she has had since her days as COSLA’s community spokesperson. She was also an active member of the Scottish Government’s Gypsy Traveller ministerial working group.
Due to the pandemic, the Gypsy Traveller action plan was extended to October 2022 to provide us with more time to deliver on the remaining actions and to build on the excellent work that has already been undertaken. Covid-19 and the pandemic crisis have already allowed us to make unexpected progress in some areas such as remote and distance learning and digital access, which have improved, and improving sites and accommodation. We will continue to work closely with the community, COSLA and partners to ensure that we meet our objectives and improve outcomes for our Gypsy Traveller communities.
As well as seeing their traditional lifestyle eroded, we know that our Gypsy Traveller communities often experience extreme and persistent stereotyping and hostility as they go about their lives. I know that the minister agrees that it is hugely important that we challenge such negative attitudes and ask that progress be made in tackling racism and discrimination, which is a central part of the action plan.
The member is right; we are working hard to address racism, prejudice and discrimination against the community. For example, some of the practical steps that we have taken include the development by NHS Fife and NHS 24 of an e-learning module, to be promoted to tackle the stigma and discrimination that some Gypsy Travellers experience when using national health services. Uptake of the module has been high. Work has also involved developing learning and development resources for Social Security Scotland, to support the needs of Gypsy Travellers when they access front-line services.
As the member will know, COSLA works with councillors across the country to raise awareness of the issues that Gypsy Travellers face, to ensure that they feel involved in their local communities.
Social Security (Support)
To ask the Scottish Government how much it plans to invest in social security support over the next five years. (S6O-00109)
As set out in this year’s budget, we are committing £3.5 billion to social security payments, which will reach more than 800,000 people. That money will go directly to the people in Scotland who need it most.
The latest Scottish Fiscal Commission forecast, which was published in August 2021, estimates that annual social security spending will rise to £5.2 billion in 2026-27, totalling £23 billion over the next five years.
The Scottish Government views social security as an investment in the people of Scotland and a fundamental human right, and we are committed to ensuring that everyone can access the financial support to which they are entitled.
I welcome the introduction of new benefits such as the Scottish child payment, which, since February, has helped more than 2,000 families that need it most in South Ayrshire alone.
This morning, I received an email from my daughter’s school, advising parents of food shortages and saying that the local school was unable to provide the school lunches that were on the menu. We are living in the aftermath of a reckless Tory Brexit, which was forced through during a global pandemic. With food and energy prices rising—
Could we have a question, please?
—and empty shelves, does the minister share my deep concerns, and agree that it is imperative that the people of Scotland get the opportunity to determine their own future and rectify those injustices?
With the powers that we have, the Scottish Government has taken unprecedented action to tackle child poverty by investing nearly £1 billion in 2020-21 to support families with children. That includes our game-changing Scottish child payment, which we will double to £20 in the lifetime of this parliamentary session, together with the best start grant and best start foods. That will provide more than £5,300 of financial support for families by the time their first child turns six.
I completely agree that our anti-poverty efforts are seriously undermined by United Kingdom Government decisions and its unjustified assault on social security in too many cases. I take the opportunity to once again call on UK Government ministers to do the right thing by reversing its planned £20 cut to universal credit, to avoid pushing a further 20,000 children in Scotland into poverty.
The pandemic has demonstrated the negative impact of coping with bereavement, with families limited to how many people can attend funerals, and people not being able to say a proper goodbye to their loved ones in care homes and hospitals. In particular, it has impacted those who provide care for a loved one.
When does the Scottish Government plan to introduce the extension of carers allowance for six months after a bereavement?
As Mr Briggs will know, the delivery of devolved social security benefits has taken place over the past three years. One of the first measures that we took, which was stipulated in the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018, was to deliver the carers allowance supplement. This year, as we did last year, we intend to give an additional supplement.
As I set out to the Social Justice and Social Security Committee last week, we are undergoing the process of appropriate stakeholder engagement and consultation on how we bring forward Scottish carers assistance. We are looking at a range of different measures around eligibility, and considering the experience of carers to make sure that we work collectively with other parties, and as a Parliament as a whole, to ensure that Scottish carers assistance helps the unpaid carers whom we all value and appreciate, and for whom, in due course, we want to deliver an enhanced benefit.
Affordable Homes for Rent
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to supporting the building of affordable homes for rent. (S6O-00110)
The Scottish Government is proud of our record on delivering, since 2007, more than 102,000 affordable homes, nearly 71,000 of which were for social rent, including more than 16,000 council homes. As the programme for government makes clear, we are committed to delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, of which 70 per cent will be available for social rent and 10 per cent will be in our remote, rural and island communities.
Delivering on that ambitious affordable homes target would support a total investment package of around £18 billion and up to 15,000 jobs each year. In the four years to 2020, we delivered over 75 per cent more affordable homes per head of population than in both England and Wales, and over nine times more social rented properties per head of population than in England.
I thank the cabinet secretary for that response. Back in April 2020, the Auditor General for Scotland told the Government that it must
“evaluate the impact of the current programme on housing needs and the economic impact of the investment in affordable housing”.
Shelter Scotland, in its document “Exiting Covid and Tackling Scotland’s Housing Emergency: Shelter Scotland’s 2021 Action Plan”, says that the Government’s programme must be about more than simply the number of housing units completed—it must be about the social impact; moving Scotland’s communities in the right direction; and, first and foremost, reducing social housing need.
Will the cabinet secretary today give a commitment to place before the Parliament an annual housing and social justice report, to include whether housing need has gone up or down; the economic and social impact of the building programme; the state of housing need and access among groups that are all too often marginalised; and measures of wider community benefit and wellbeing?
Richard Leonard will, I hope, be aware that the “Housing to 2040” strategy talks about many of those issues. Housing is not just about bricks and mortar—it is a core anti-poverty measure, and I very much understand that.
I was asked something along the same lines as Richard Leonard’s question when I attended the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee this week. I said that I would reflect on whether, in addition to the myriad pieces of information that are provided on progress towards the affordable housing targets—there are a lot of statistics, data and reporting—further reports would be of benefit. I do not think that anyone can say that an ambitious target of 110,000 affordable homes, a total investment package of £18 billion and the creation of 15,000 jobs each year is anything other than to be welcomed.
Rural Housing Fund
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the rural housing fund. (S6O-00111)
Between 2016-17 and 2019-20, the Scottish Government invested more than £400 million through the affordable housing supply programme, including the rural and islands housing funds, in rural and island communities, and delivered more than 4,800 affordable homes in that time. The rural and islands housing funds are described in the Scottish Land Commission’s report on “The Role of Land in Enabling New Housing Supply in Rural Scotland” as “game changers” for community-led housing development.
We have committed to delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, of which 10 per cent will be in our remote, rural and island communities, backed by at least £45 million.
I thank the cabinet secretary for that response. However, she is well aware that less than half the £25 million fund that was set aside for rural housing has actually been spent, despite the chronic shortages of affordable housing in many parts of the countryside, and that there has been much faster progress on house building in the central belt than in rural areas. Can she explain why that is the case and what is being done to rectify the situation?
As I said in my initial answer, good progress has been made in delivering rural housing. I talked about the 4,800 affordable homes that have been delivered in that time. However, Liz Smith will be aware of some of the particular challenges in remote and rural Scotland, such as land availability, community capacity to bring forward proposals and ensuring that those proposals can get from pre-development to the development stage. Those are complex matters, which is why, in recognition that we need to do more, we have committed to developing a rural and remote housing plan that is dedicated to the needs of rural and remote Scotland.
That consultation will talk to communities the length and breadth of Scotland to make sure that we can get it right in every community, even for small-scale developments. That is, of course, backed up by the additional resources that we have made available.
Housing Shortage in Rural Areas
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the reported shortage of housing in rural areas. (S6O-00113)
As I said, the Government has significantly invested in affordable housing, delivering 4,800 homes between 2016-17 and 2019-20 as part of the £3.4 billion affordable housing supply programme, and we have committed to the 10 per cent of 110,000 homes target. We are also committed to developing our remote, rural and islands action plan. Councils are being given significant additional powers to manage particular challenges in communities, such as short-term lets—we will lay legislation for a licensing scheme in November. We are also giving local authorities the power to deal with second homes, if they see that as a problem in their area.
Given that the population of rural areas is growing and now accounts for 17 per cent of Scotland’s population, does the cabinet secretary think that the 10 per cent that she referred to of the target of 110,000 homes is going to be adequate? Put simply, that is about 1,000 properties a year. There are big challenges when it comes to labour shortages in rural areas, and access to affordable housing is one of the biggest barriers. Surely we should be planning to build more houses in order to tackle that challenge.
I see the 10 per cent target as a minimum and, through the rural and remote housing plan, we will get a better sense and more evidence of what the housing need is. I want to take a more strategic approach to looking at housing needs in remote and rural Scotland. We have been relying on community organisations and community responses for proposals, and that can be sometimes quite difficult, because of the complexities. We want to assist communities to analyse and agree housing needs and priorities, and then work with them and local authorities and social landlords to work up plans to deal with those shortages.
Will the cabinet secretary outline what action is being taken to reduce the impact of the huge increase in short-term lets on the availability of rural housing? That issue is of major concern to those who live in those areas.
Our licensing scheme will ensure that all short-term lets across Scotland comply with basic safety standards, in order to protect guests and neighbours. Local authorities will have the discretion to add further licence conditions in order to address any local concerns such as littering or the overcrowding of properties. The licensing scheme will provide local authorities with data on the number, type and location of short-term lets in their areas. They can also, of course, designate short-term let control areas if they wish to do so, in order to address pressures that are created by secondary short-term letting. Within a control area, planning permission would always be required to let out a whole home for short-term lets. Finally, the provisions will allow local authorities to manage high concentrations of secondary letting where those affect the availability of residential accommodation or the character of a neighbourhood.
The shortage of housing is not just a rural issue; it is an island issue. What action is being taken to tackle island housing shortages, which disproportionately affect young people and are a significant factor in island depopulation?
I very much appreciate that issue, and the remote, rural and island housing plan will absolutely look at the needs of island communities. It can also look at how we use island bonds as part of the response to that.
Just this morning, I met with the leader of Shetland Islands Council. We talked about many issues, and the issue that the member raised was one of those that we explored. We will have further discussions about it as we take matters forward.
Child Poverty
To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making on reducing child poverty. (S6O-00112)
Child poverty is a national mission, which is shown through the almost £1 billion of targeted investment that we provided last year. Our Scottish child payment has already reached 108,000 children. Combined with our bridging payments, it will provide more than £130 million directly to families this year. However, we will go further and double the Scottish child payment to £20 a week as soon as we can put the budgetary provisions in place. That complements wider action across Government, from the 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare to the expansion of free school meals and an increase in the school clothing grant. Those are all examples of positive steps that the Government is taking to tackle child poverty.
Does the cabinet secretary agree that the Scottish child payment has already made significant strides towards reducing child poverty in Scotland in general and in Glasgow, in particular, where 58,520 payments have been made to Glasgow families, totalling £2,895,000, and that that demonstrates the Scottish Government’s progressive thinking as opposed to the regressive universal credit cuts that the United Kingdom Government is callously pursuing?
I agree that the Scottish child payment has been acclaimed as a game changer in the fight against child poverty and is projected to lift thousands of children out of poverty. The member outlined how that is impacting positively on Glasgow families. However, that policy is being completely undermined by the UK Government’s regressive £20 cut to universal credit, which will be the biggest overnight cut to welfare in 70 years. Some 60,000 families across Scotland, including some 20,000 children could be pushed into poverty.
We have urged the UK Government to reverse its plans on numerous occasions, most recently in conjunction with the Welsh and Northern Irish Governments.
Citizens Advice Scotland has said that 4,000 families will lose eligibility for the Scottish child payment if the abhorrent cut to universal credit goes ahead. Will the Scottish Government commit today to continuing to pay the Scottish child payment to those families?
As I said, the UK Government cutting the £20-a-week uplift to universal credit could reduce the number of children who are eligible for the Scottish child payment by around an estimated 2,000. For some families, the universal credit cut will be enough to remove their entitlement to the Scottish child payment. However, the problem is that we rely on top-up powers to deliver those payments. We do not have any other legislative basis to allow us to do so. I call on the UK Government not to cut the £20-a-week uplift to universal credit. We want people to remain eligible for the Scottish child payment. However, because that payment is delivered through the top-up powers, we are constrained in what we can do for those families.
It is deeply disappointing that the Scottish Government has yet again failed to commit to paying the Scottish child payment in the next fiscal year as all other parties, civic society and the faith community have called for. Of course, the reason why it has not done that is that independence is on its mind and there is room for nothing else. Can the cabinet secretary explain why the Government insists on continually putting its constitutional obsession before the wellbeing of our young people?
I find it astonishing that a Tory MSP would come to the chamber to demand that the Scottish Government double the Scottish child payment this year—[Interruption.]
Mr Balfour, no shouting from a sedentary position.
—in the very month that his Government is going to remove £20 a week—[Interruption.]
Sorry, cabinet secretary, but could you resume your seat for a second? Mr Balfour, I do not want shouting across the chamber.
I think that I might have touched a raw nerve.
Every time a Tory MSP comes to the chamber and utters the words “child poverty”, I will remind them of what their Government is about to do this very month in cutting £20 a week from some of the most vulnerable families. They should get their own house in order before coming here and demanding that we do anything. It is an absolute disgrace and a total brass neck.
Commission on Violence Against Women
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on establishing a commission to prevent violence against women, in all its forms. (S6O-00114)
Violence against women and girls is one of the most devastating and fundamental violations of human rights and is totally unacceptable. Rather than establishing a commission to tackle it, we are committed to delivering against the equally safe strategy and continuing our collaborative work with a wide range of partners in the sector via the equally safe joint strategic board.
We have also tasked the independent working group on misogyny and criminal justice in Scotland with evaluating how the Scottish criminal justice system deals with misogyny, including by looking at whether there are gaps in the law.
Earlier in the year, when Scottish Liberal Democrats suggested the idea of a commission to prevent violence against women and girls, the Government agreed that it would be willing to explore the idea of such a commission with an open mind and that a commission might help bring all the strands of the work together.
Statistics that have been published this week show that, of 1,045 stalking charges reported to the Crown Office in 2021, at least 592 were identified as domestic abuse. I am dismayed to hear the cabinet secretary—
Would you get to the question, please, Mr Cole-Hamilton?
—suggest that there will not be a commission. I ask her to explain to the chamber why the Government has decided not to embark on such a commission.
The member is aware of all the work that is happening in this area. In my first answer, I described the current work around the equally safe strategy. I have also described the work of the working group on misogyny and criminal justice, and a review of the law is going on in this area as well. The Minister for Community Safety has also been looking at what further areas of the law require reform. I do not think that anybody can really accuse the Government of not taking action across all those areas.
It is not that we have an objection in principle to a commission; we just think that this work is being taken forward already through those other platforms. I hope that the member will engage constructively in those discussions.
Constitution, External Affairs and Culture
I ask all members who seek to participate in portfolio questions—back benchers as well as front benchers—to ensure that their cards are in their consoles.
Also, if a member wishes to request to ask a supplementary question, they should either press their request-to-speak button, or indicate so in the chat function by entering R during the relevant question.
United Kingdom City of Culture 2025 (Borderlands)
To ask the Scottish Government what support it can offer the Borderlands region with its bid to be UK city of culture 2025. (S6O-00115)
I wish the Borderlands, the Tay cities region, and Stirling all the best in the longlisting stage of the UK city of culture competition.
My officials met the Borderlands bid team on 23 August to hear about the content of its bid and to discuss useful connections that Scottish Government officials could help to facilitate—for example, with VisitScotland—to allow it to be on the front foot if it was longlisted. I understand that its longlisted bid will be announced later this month.
I thank Jenny Gilruth for that answer, and I wish the other Scottish bids all the very best, too. We, in the Borderlands partnership, are very well placed to showcase what we have in the Borders. We can build on cross-border and cross-party collaboration and on the UK and Scottish Government growth deal. We need to highlight our intrinsic cultural, historical and societal links and to draw international attention to the region.
I would like to ask the cabinet secretary, in the spirit of learning lessons from the Paisley bid several years ago, what support and guidance the Scottish Government might be able to offer the exciting new Borderlands bid.
I recognise Rachael Hamilton’s constituency interest in the matter, and I note that she wrote—in July, I think—to the UK Government culture minister on it. It is a UK Government policy for which, she will note, there is an expert UK panel that will select six bids to receive support to develop a longer bid.
In July, I signed off the appointment of Roberta Doyle to the expert panel as Scotland’s representative, and I know that the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has stated that it hopes for a representative geographical spread in the shortlisting.
Scottish bids have been shortlisted previously, but no Scottish bid has yet been successful at procuring the title. Indeed, Rachael Hamilton will recall the amount of hard work that went into Paisley’s bid. My officials have been in contact with the bidding team from the Borders, and we will continue to have those conversations. I look forward to seeing the longlist at the end of this month, and I hope, of course, to see Scottish representation in the final list.
United Kingdom City of Culture 2025 (Tay Cities and Stirling)
To ask the Scottish Government how it will support the bids from the Tay cities region and Stirling to be UK city of culture 2025. (S6O-00116)
My officials have already met representatives of the Stirling bid and have sent a note of introduction to the Tay cities team, offering to meet. The Tay cities team has advised my officials that, if its bid is longlisted, it will be back in touch to arrange a further discussion. Scottish Government officials have liaised with the relevant United Kingdom Government team throughout the design and implementation process to ensure that Scottish interests are represented.
Mid Scotland and Fife region has two bids to be the UK city of culture 2025. How will Scottish Government funding for cultural projects across the region assist in supporting those important bids?
As I previously stated, the UK city of culture programme is a UK Government sponsored competition. The Scottish Government’s approach to working with the Department for Digital Culture, Media and Sport on the UK city of culture 2025 was signed off by the previous cabinet secretary in a letter to Oliver Dowden, the UK Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, agreeing that we would, of course, work with DCMS officials on design and implementation of the process that I spoke to in my response to Rachael Hamilton.
As I understand it, the Stirling bid is purely for Stirling itself, whereas the Tay cities bid takes in Angus, Dundee, North East Fife, and Perth and Kinross. I will not ask Mr Fraser to pick sides, given that I know that he represents both areas. I hope that he understands that I am keen, at this stage, to support both Scottish bids as they move forward. I wish the Stirling and Tay cities bids the best of luck.
On funding, if Mr Fraser has any influence, he might wish to raise with his Conservative colleagues at Westminster the expanding culture consequentials that are due to the Scottish Government—a sum total of £31 million, of which the culture sector in Scotland is, of course, in dire need.
Brexit (Impact on Imports)
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the United Kingdom Government regarding the impact of Brexit on Scotland’s ability to import essentials such as food and medicine. (S6O-00117)
Brexit has led to significant challenges, including labour and skills shortages, which could have an impact on supplies of food and other goods. It was an astonishing act of recklessness by the UK Government to press ahead with a hard Brexit in the middle of a pandemic, and it did so despite the Scottish Government’s having provided detailed evidence of the damage that it would cause. We are doing whatever we can to mitigate the harms that are being inflicted on Scottish businesses.
Since 1 January, the Scottish Government has, at official and ministerial levels, attended 29 European Union exit operations committee meetings to discuss the impact of Brexit with the UK Government.
I have been contacted by constituents who are extremely worried about the consequences of Brexit on recognition of UK prescriptions in the EU and on imports going through customs controls. Will the cabinet secretary urge the UK Government to rectify those problems?
Since 1 January 2021, UK-issued prescriptions are no longer valid in the European Union, except in Ireland and Spain, where separate arrangements apply. Prescription charges can be applied to UK citizens by pharmacists in both those countries. The Scottish Government continues to work closely with the UK Government regarding the impact of EU exit on import of medicines in the event of border disruption.
I stress to my friend Collette Stevenson that there is, of course, a solution to all this, which is that at the soonest practical point we should rejoin the European Union, so that we do not need to go through the continuing woes that Brexit is causing for our economy and for so many communities the length and breadth of this country.
Question 4 has not been lodged.
Scottish Government Offices in Warsaw and Copenhagen
To ask the Scottish Government when it will establish the new overseas offices in Warsaw and Copenhagen, as set out in its agreement with the Scottish Green Party. (S6O-00119)
As was announced in the programme for government, we will open a Scottish Government office in Copenhagen next year to increase Scotland’s economic and cultural visibility in the Nordic region. In this parliamentary session, we will also open an office in Warsaw, as part of our continued commitment to enhancing our external reach and voice.
As the minister will be aware, 32 of the Scottish Government’s existing 38 international offices are located in British embassies and consulates. As she will also be aware, more than 60 per cent of Scotland’s trade is with the rest of the United Kingdom, but there is only one investment trade office in that market. When will the Government take steps, such as opening trade offices, to support and increase Scotland’s trade with the rest of the UK?
Scotland’s international network has been supported by ministers from a range of political parties for a decade, so I hope that the issue will not become politicised in the future. In 1992, Scotland Europa was established in Brussels under a Conservative Administration, and offices in Boston and Beijing were opened under the Labour-Lib Dem coalition.
Scotland’s international presence is even more important now, in the wake of Brexit—which of course we did not vote for—and given the damage that it is causing to our economy, jobs and trade. Our network of international offices promotes Scotland’s enterprise internationally; indeed, in 2020, work to attract investment by our offices both at home and overseas helped to increase foreign direct investment in Scotland by 6 per cent.
The establishment of new overseas offices will play an important role in developing Scotland’s international relationships. Can the minister provide an update on what further action the Scottish Government is taking to strengthen Scotland’s international presence and voice?
Our international presence creates domestic opportunities, broadens our horizons, attracts investment and, ultimately, benefits the people of Scotland. Our policies and actions abroad will be consistent with our focus on fairness and inclusion at home. The programme for government emphasises our commitment to reviewing our approach to future policy and economic engagement, with a view to enhancing Scotland’s global reach and presence.
Scottish Independence (Monarch)
6.
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its co-operation agreement with the Scottish Green Party, whether it will provide an update on its position on maintaining the monarch as the head of state in an independent Scotland. (S6O-00120)
I begin by commending Douglas Lumsden for his implied recognition that there will be an independence referendum. That is extremely welcome.
As the co-operation agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party parliamentary group makes clear, each party continues to have the right to set out its own vision for independence. The Scottish Government’s view remains clear: Scotland will remain a constitutional monarchy, with the Queen as head of state, just as she is in a great many other independent Commonwealth countries.
Does the cabinet secretary agree with the First Minister’s adviser Mark Blyth that
“unwinding centuries of economic integration could prove devastating to businesses”
in the short, medium and long terms? Would he further agree with me that Scotland is best placed to succeed in the short, medium and long terms politically, economically and socially with the monarch as head of state, and with the union as the defender of Scotland’s interests?
The gentleman obviously needs to reread some history. Scotland was, of course, part of a treaty involving the Crowns for 100 years before the treaty of union saw the end of the Scottish Parliament.
As the First Minister set out, work on a detailed independence prospectus will now be taken forward, in line with the democratic mandate that has been secured for a referendum. For the record—if it needs any more stressing—the parties that were committed to a democratic choice in the recent Scottish Parliament elections won the election, while the parties that opposed a referendum lost. We will determine how the work towards that referendum will proceed, as we do for delivering our commitments across the whole range of our responsibilities, in the interests of the people of Scotland.
Afghan Refugees (Housing Assessment)
7.
To ask the Scottish Government what work it has done to assess how many Afghan refugees can be housed across all local authority areas. (S6O-00121)
Scotland will play its part in welcoming refugees from Afghanistan. We are undertaking urgent work with the Home Office, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and local authorities directly, and other partners to assess the contribution that Scotland can make.
Local authorities assess their ability to provide accommodation and services, and offers are then matched with refugees who are accepted for resettlement by the Home Office on the basis of their needs.
We are keen to explore all avenues through which to provide suitable housing. However, we need detailed information from the United Kingdom Government in order to be able to progress work to identify suitable accommodation and service availability to meet the needs of people who arrive.
It would be useful if the cabinet secretary could keep Parliament updated on the number of refugees who come to Scotland. Could he give more detail on the money that was announced last week and how it will be spent? As he knows, previous work on refugees has been funded by the Home Office. Will he outline what he is doing to look at the pressures on councils, and outline what can be done by the Scottish Government to provide help with wider support services?
I commend Katy Clark for her questions and the positive way in which she put them. I greatly welcome those questions.
I held a conversation on Monday with the new UK minister with responsibility for Afghan refugee resettlement. It was a very positive meeting at which I asked the same questions as Katy Clark has asked about funding, in terms of both direct funding and Barnett consequentials. Unfortunately, however, I have had no detailed breakdown of any commitments from the UK Government following the conversation. I will continue to press the UK Government, because we need answers on that matter.
Katy Clark is absolutely right about the pressures on local authorities, which is why we need to understand the financial side of the equation. However, we must also consider the issue of numbers that she addressed. I will add one simple fact to the debate in order that members understand the scale of the challenge. The average Afghan family size is more than six people. We want to ensure that Afghan families remain united, but it does not take a genius to work out that it is a challenge to find, in our housing stock, houses that are appropriate for people in those circumstances.
We will do absolutely everything that we can do. I appreciate that members want hard and fast numbers, but it is a fast-moving situation and we are trying our best to identify available housing stock, work with local authorities and get the resources in place to maximise the number of people whom we can take in Scotland.
Considerable concerns have been raised about the impact that the Home Office’s Nationality and Borders Bill might have on vulnerable individuals who seek sanctuary in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK. Does the cabinet secretary agree that the bill’s proposals are flawed and risk creating further barriers for vulnerable people who seek protection?
Yes, I do. The UK Government’s Nationality and Borders Bill is deeply flawed and will not create an immigration system that is effective and efficient and which delivers for the most vulnerable people. The bill will differentiate between people on the basis of how they entered the UK, not the protection that they need.
The Scottish Government recognises the need to deter and to prevent abuse of our immigration and asylum systems. However, extremely vulnerable people, including children and victims of human trafficking, deserve a system that enables access to the support that they desperately need—not one that erects barriers. The bill puts Scotland’s reputation as a country of welcome and refuge at serious risk. The Scottish Government will continue to make the case for immigration and asylum systems that at all times treat people with compassion, dignity and fairness.
Cultural Sector (Support)
To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the cultural sector’s recovery in the current financial year, including the provision of funding. (S6O-00122)
Since the start of the pandemic, the Scottish Government has provided £175 million to the culture, heritage and events sector, which is far more than we have received in consequentials from the United Kingdom Government. That includes £25 million that was announced in June 2021 for the culture organisations and venues recovery fund and the performing arts venues relief fund. We have created guidance for reopening of cultural performances and events, which we will continue to revise to ensure that it remains relevant to the sector.
We will continue to work with the whole culture sector, building on new and existing relationships in order to understand the immediate challenges that it faces as it returns to full capacity. We will work with the sector to consider how to build a resilient future, recognising that different parts of it will be affected in different ways.
Pre-pandemic, there was a huge discrepancy in the disbursement of funds and support over the culture sector. We acknowledge that large cities have national collections but, even so, Glasgow received 25 times the funding per capita that North Ayrshire received. Will the cabinet secretary confirm that such discrepancies will be tackled as we build back better?
We know how valuable culture is and we are committed to continuing to provide access to culture for communities and creative workers across Scotland as we rebuild from the pandemic. We continue to invest in programmes that have a broad reach across Scotland, including through the youth music initiative and the culture collective fund.
Cultural venues across Scotland, including a number of recipients based in North Ayrshire, have, over the course of the pandemic, received funding through the culture organisations and venues recovery fund, which has been an important step in supporting cultural organisations and venues to navigate these extremely challenging times.