Chamber and committees

Due to the urgent need to respond to a humanitarian crisis, the Scottish Government undertook rapid engagement with relevant organisations prior to and immediately after taking the decision to support displaced persons from Ukraine.

To address stakeholder concerns around the speed of the UK Government’s private matching scheme, as well as safeguarding issues, the Scottish Government and COSLA agreed to commit to an initial triage of 3000 displaced people from Ukraine through a Super Sponsor Scheme. This provided a fast and safe alternative to private sponsorship, meaning people could travel immediately and be provided with temporary accommodation, meals and a range of support and advice including translation, assessing medical needs (such as trauma) and applying for benefits.

The process of matching of arrivals from Ukraine has drawn on COSLA’s extensive experience. Such as with the Syrian Resettlement Programme, which saw all 32 local authorities in Scotland participate and welcome over 3,300 refugees into their communities.

The Scottish Government’s Super Sponsor Scheme has now offered sanctuary to over 10,000 displaced people from Ukraine to travel to safety in Scotland, far exceeding the original commitment and providing sanctuary for people who otherwise could not have travelled were it not for the Super Sponsor Scheme.

Scottish Governments priority is to ensure that displaced people who are already here, and those who have applied and are granted permission to travel, are able to stay in appropriate temporary accommodation and get the right support ahead of moving into safe, sustainable longer-term accommodation.

The Scottish Government has also made available £11.2 million in funding to help local authorities increase their teams to help people with temporary resettlement into communities across Scotland, and also to invest in making improvements to housing stock so that there are more homes available for Ukrainians to move into. We have also provided a further £1.3 million to the Scottish Refugee Council to enable it to increase its capacity and extend invaluable help and support to arriving Ukrainians, many of whom will have experienced significant trauma.

We are taking significant action to increase our temporary accommodation capacity as well as boosting our matching system to maximise the number of people who can be placed with volunteer hosts who have completed the necessary safeguarding checks. We have, for example, chartered a second passenger ship, M/S Ambition, to be located in Glasgow. The ship should be fully operational in September, and it will provide up to a further 1750 people with the same level of facilities and support currently available to those on the M/S Victoria in Edinburgh.

Pay for council workers, excluding teachers, is determined through negotiations at the Scottish Joint Committee (SJC). These negotiations take place between the trade unions (UNISON, Unite and GMB) and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), who act on behalf of Scotland’s 32 councils.

The Scottish Government continues to urge both parties to continue negotiations via the SJC in order to achieve a negotiated settlement which avoids industrial action.

It has been heart-warming to see the groundswell of support from our communities, pubic services, third sector and partners for people fleeing Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. We have worked closely and collaboratively with partners to stand up our Warm Scots Welcome response, ensuring that all those arriving from Ukraine are accommodated and supported as soon as they arrive in Scotland. Local authority caseworkers are in place to enable access to services including healthcare, education, employment and benefits advice.

In collaboration with the Scottish Refugee Council, we have delivered three public webinar sessions for hosts. Scottish Government officials regularly engage with community groups working to support people fleeing the war in Ukraine, and those who have volunteered to host displaced people in their homes.

We are working closely with the UK Government, local authorities and other partners to ensure we are ready to welcome people to Scotland and ensure they are provided with the safety and security they need to rebuild their lives. A national matching service, delivered by COSLA and Scottish Government, is working hard to find longer-term accommodation for displaced people from Ukraine, ensuring their full integration into communities across the country.

All 32 Scottish local authorities are working to conduct the necessary person and property checks for volunteers in Scotland who, having signed up initially for the UK Government scheme, have continued to express interest in hosting displaced people. Once checks have been completed, if the offer is deemed suitable, these hosts' details are uploaded onto the national matching service database, so that displaced people can be offered the opportunity to move into their homes.

We are aware that some volunteer hosts have expressed interest but have not yet been contacted, while others are still awaiting the outcome of checks. The Scottish Government is grateful to volunteer hosts for their generosity, and their patience. We are working closely with local authorities and with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), doing all we can to speed up the matching process and increase the numbers of displaced people moving into host accommodation, including enhancing teams to boost capacity.

The Scottish Government has made available £11.2 million in funding to help local authorities increase their teams to help people with temporary resettlement into communities across Scotland, and also to invest in making improvements to housing stock so that there are more homes available for Ukrainians to move into.

The Scottish Government has also published guidance for local authorities which includes what safeguarding measures, such as disclosure checks, should be in place for people arriving. This guidance can be found on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/publications/super-sponsor-scheme-and-homes-for-ukraine-guidance-for-local-authorities/pages/person-checks/ .

The Lord Advocate is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of all criminal matters which occur in Scotland. Where a matter requires investigation, this is undertaken by COPFS on behalf of the Lord Advocate. The Crown provides advice, support and direction to investigators from Police Service of Scotland, throughout the course of the investigation.

The criminal investigation by the Police Service of Scotland is ongoing. This is a complex and challenging investigation. Evidence has had to be sought and obtained from a number of different countries outwith the United Kingdom with a view to considering whether there is evidence of any potential offences over which the Scottish courts have jurisdiction.

As Lord Advocate, I am responsible for the investigation and prosecution of all criminal matters which occur in Scotland. Where a matter requires investigation, this is undertaken by COPFS on behalf of the Lord Advocate. The Crown provides advice, support and direction to investigators from Police Service of Scotland, throughout the course of the investigation.

The investigation is ongoing. The Crown does not provide information about the evidential position in ongoing investigations, with a view to maintaining confidence in the integrity and confidentiality of the Crown’s functions, including confidence on the part of those who provide, or may provide, information to the Crown.

The regulation of offshore oil and gas activities is not a devolved matter and falls under the remit of the regulator, in this case, the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning Programme, referred to as OPRED, which sits within the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The role of the regulator is to review, approve and monitor the implementation of decommissioning programmes. All actions in decommissioning, both onshore and offshore, which relate to waste have to follow a regulatory process, and undergo an environmental impact assessment. These programmes outline the schedule of all planned works and are subject to public consultation. Where there is no set schedule, the timeframe for recovery of any temporarily stored materials is stipulated in the environmental justification documents and it is the role of the regulator to monitor this.

OPRED are advised by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the Statutory Nature Conservation Body who provide information and advice on environmental impacts of offshore industries. Where it is shown there will be little to no impact on the protected features within a Marine Protected Area, these activities are able to be undertaken with appropriate mitigation measures in place. Furthermore, in accordance with OPRED guidelines, a localised ‘as-left’ survey is carried out on recovery.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-09230 on 11 July 2022, the Scottish Government does not maintain a record of the number checks undertaken using the Guidance on due diligence: human rights. 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 .