 Cymdeinidogau newid o gweithio Rhyw Yn Llywydd, cyfnodau? Cymdeinidogau no 1, Ruth Davidson. Rydym ni yw wnaeth gyda i gweithio'r gweithio? Rydym ni wedi gweithio'r Gweithengifeth i fod y Gwylлиmp yn Fllwythgawdd. Rhyw Gweithengifeth? Rydym ni i gweithio'r Gweithengifeth? Yn iawn i chi gael y cyffredinid yng Nghymru oherwydd y dynod yng Nghymru o kyllidau y Llywyddyn, Wale Gawr, ac mae Gwyl Llywydd i gael Gwyl Llywydd i gael gyfprf Luckyw. ond o'r gweithio constitutionale, ond ac here's what he said about the United Kingdom aid effort. He said, He said, You are the reason that malaria deaths are down in entire villages and life-saving vaccines are now reaching kids in the most remote parts of the world. Presiding Officer, we're about to fight a general election campaign where we know what the SNP's message will be. It will be that living in the UK under a Conservative Government will be hell on earth. Given the work that this country does around the world, iawn i gweithio'r bwysig yr oedd ymwysig y taww chyfnod gan gwelliadau, o'r bynnag twfadwr? Felly, mae'n ddull hwn ddweud o'r cyflugau a'i ddim drwy gwaith yn y g�au? Rydw i ddim fod yn yn gweithio'r rhagoriaeth mommydd. Felly, mae'n ddweud o'r cyflugau a'i dweud o'r rhagoriaeth mynd i gael fawr. Mae'n ddweud o'r cyflugau i ddweud o'r rhagoriaeth mynd i gael eu llwyth y cwrdd yn ei ddesun i gael fath filon. 7% of GDP helping the world's poorest communities. That's something the SNP argued for long before it was ever a Tory commitment. I did hear Bill Gates' comment last night, I heard him in a number of interviews and I also heard him express concern, as others have expressed, that the Tory manifesto at the forthcoming election will drop the commitment to 0.7%. I welcome Ruth Davidson's commitment, but will she assure the chamber today that it will be in the Tory manifesto, the UK Tory manifesto for the next election, because no Tory UK minister has yet been willing to give that commitment? On to the wider issue of the election, I think that the key issue at this election is who is going to stand up for Scotland against an increasingly hardline Tory government. The Prime Minister herself has made it very clear that, in this election, her objective is to crush dissent so that she can do whatever she wants. People across Scotland have got to be clear that there is no safe, tactical Tory vote at this election. We have seen the damage that Tories do with a small majority. I know that they do not want to hear it, but with a small majority, the Tories have cut Scotland's budget. They have imposed the bedroom tax, the rape clause, cuts in disabled support and robbed women of their pension entitlement. Let's think about the damage that a Tory government could do with a bigger majority. Yes, if the thought of a one-party Tory stranglehold at Westminster does horrify you, if you want effective opposition in Scotland, that can only come from the SNP. Ruth Davidson gave the commitment to the aid budget when she was in East Kilbride at Difford's Headquarter, where the aid is administered all around the world. Let's get back to the SNP's contribution. Hell on Earth, eternal damnation in a bottomless pit, direct quotes from her backbencher, Joan McAlpine, writing about life in the UK in a national newspaper this week. On the one hand, we have people like Bill Gates who are talking about the brilliant work that his foundation is doing alongside British Aid workers, about the summit that his wife is hosting this summer with the UK Government in support of millions more women and girls to get them access to contraception, and on the other, we have Nicola Sturgeon's colleagues writing offensive and negative trash about our country. So who does the First Minister stand with? Is it Bill Gates or is it Joan McAlpine? First Minister, I have to say a number of things to that. First, Ruth Davidson says that Theresa May has given the commitment. Theresa May was on radio the morning after she called the general election, and she was challenged to commit to the not-point-7 per cent commitment being in the manifesto, and she wouldn't do it. She was challenged to do something else as well. She was challenged to say that the Tories would have a commitment to the triple lock on pensions in the manifesto, and she wouldn't do that either. So I think that we should look very closely at the commitments that the Tories make, and at the commitments that the Tories do not make at this election. I support the work that DFID does around the world. I am proud of the work that this Government does in Malawi and other countries around the world, as well as helping women to get contraception, as well as many other things. Do you know what I find utterly abhorrent? As DFID does things like that overseas at home, this Tory Government is forcing women to prove that they have been raped before they get access to benefits for their children. I will give Ruth Davidson a chance to do today what she has shamefully so far refused today. Do not pass the buck. Stand up here today and tell this chamber, tell Scotland to stand up straight. Do you support the rape clause in principle, or do you, like me, think that it is utterly abhorrent? Answer the question. Ruth Davidson. I will answer the question the same way that I answered it in the press this morning. If the First Minister does not like the two-child tax policy, she can change it. But the truth is that this First Minister is always happier, always happier, complaining about the UK Government than she is about doing anything herself. The fact is that the way the SNP is readying itself to pour negativity on this country at this election is shameful. She might not like it, but Scotland is part of this United Kingdom. If the First Minister really wants to set out her stall at this election, it is not a practical vision of how she is governing Scotland the very least that we should all expect, or given the way that education and the economy are going, if she is just banking on the fact that Scotland just will not buy it. The First Minister. Can I say this? Shame, shame on Ruth Davidson, the true colours of Ruth Davidson and the Conservatives, given the opportunity to stand up clearly and join others in this chamber and say that the rape clause, a clause that forces a woman to prove that she has been raped before claiming benefits for her children, is morally and, in principle, wrong. Ruth Davidson refuses to do so. That is utterly shameful. I think that it brings into sharp focus the key issue at the heart of this general election. I ask people to think about this. The rape clause has been introduced by a Tory Government at Westminster with a tiny majority. If that is what a Tory Government can do with a tiny majority, let us just think of the damage a Tory Government, an unfettered out of control Tory Government can do with a bigger majority. If people in Scotland want protection against a Tory Government, if people in Scotland want an effective strong opposition to a Tory Government, they will not get it from unelectable labour, they will not get it from the Lib Dems, who still say that they would support a Tory Government, they will only get it from the SNP and Scotland needs protection from the Tories. Ruth Davidson. In the weeks ahead, those benches will set out our vision of a United Kingdom that is a force for good in the world. We will stand up for Scotland's decision to stay in the United Kingdom. We will say no to a second referendum so that Scotland can get on with building better schools and better public services. What about the SNP's plans? The First Minister's very first intervention in this election has been to say that she has put Jeremy Corbyn in number 10. Is this because uniquely the First Minister sees in Mr Corbyn the wisdom and the foresight and the leadership skills that are needed in a Prime Minister? Or could it possibly be because in his own words Jeremy Corbyn is absolutely fine with another referendum on independence? Is that the alliance that she is really seeking when she was down in London? The First Minister. This is pretty tired stuff from the Tories. You only have to take one look at the polls to know that Jeremy Corbyn is not going anywhere near number 10, down in the street, on his own or with the help of anybody else. That brings us back to the core issue because of the unelectability of Labour. Scotland faces the prospect of an unfettered out-of-control Tory Government, and we know the damage that that can do to Scotland, to our budget, to the vulnerable, to pensions to our economy. That is the choice for Scotland. Vote SNP to make sure that Scotland's voice is heard and that Scotland has protection against the Tories, because the problem for Ruth Davidson, as she has so clearly set out today, Scotland knows the Tory vision for Scotland, the rape clause, penalising the vulnerable, taking motability vehicles away from disabled people. People across Scotland know the vision and the programme of the Tories, and that is why people in Scotland know that if they want protection against that Tory vision, they must vote SNP. 2. Kezia Dugdale To ask the First Minister what engagements she has planned for the rest of the week. First Minister. Engagements to take forward the Government's programme for Scotland. Kezia Dugdale In recent weeks, the First Minister has joined me in calling out the Tories on the horrific rape clause. She is accused to Theresa May of seeking to undermine devolution, and she has said that the Tories are taking us off a cliff edge with hard Brexit. She has just told us that we have seen what the damage a Tory Government can do. Why did the SNP abstain yesterday, instead of voting with Labour to get rid of this Tory Government? First Minister. I hate to be the one that has to point it out, Kezia Dugdale. It was not the SNP that voted with the Tories yesterday in the House of Commons. It was Labour who tripped through the lobbies with the Tories yesterday. You know the lobby, I mean it's that one that had turkeys in Christmas written above it. In this election, Labour is going to replace the Tories is frankly pie in the sky. The issue and the threat at this election is that due to Labour's complete unelectability, we face an unfettered out of control Tory Government. We know that the Prime Minister wants to silence opposition, so the question for Scotland is this. If you want a strong opposition to the Tories, if you want MPs who will stand up and be a voice for Scotland, then the only party to support at this election is this one, the SNP. Kezia Dugdale. Labour MPs voted yesterday to get rid of this miserable Tory Government. Imagine my surprise that the SNP MPs didn't do the same. The First Minister has said that she wants an honest debate, so let's have it. It suits the SNP for the Tories to stay in power. That's why they refused to vote Theresa May out of office yesterday. Every day that the Tories remain in power, 430,000 Scots go without a real living wage. Waspy women go without the pension that they have worked their whole lives for, and young people have their housing benefit stripped away from them. It suits the SNP for the Tories to stay in power, because the only thing that the SNP has ever cared about is independence. So tell us, First Minister, on 8 June, what's more important, kicking the Tories out of office or having another divisive referendum? First Minister. Jeremy Corbyn is unelectable and will leave Labour carping from the sidelines. How do we know that? That's what Kezia Dugdale said about Jeremy Corbyn with Kezia Dugdale about how awful and damaging the Tory Government is. That's why I think it is so utterly shameful and disgraceful that Labour has allowed itself to get in the position that this lot of 20 points ahead of them in the opinion polls UK-wide and are even ahead of them in Scotland as well. That's Labour's failure and it is an utter disgrace, but it brings us back to the core point at stake in this election. The only thing in this election standing between an out-of-control, unfettered Tory Government and Scotland is the SNP. If people want to make sure that the Tory Government can be held to account, if they want to make sure that there is a strong voice for Scotland and if they want to make sure that Scotland is protected against exactly the kinds of policies that Kezia Dugdale talks about, they have to make sure that they send SNP MPs back to Westminster. Kezia Dugdale. It was the First Minister in 2015 who told Scotland vote SNP to keep the Tories out. How's that going? How's that going? Can I state to her in all seriousness? If Jeremy Corbyn was hefyd yn cael rhan o defnyddio, yn cynnig o ddiweddol, yn eio'r defnyddio cyfnodydd, i fi yn cael rhan o misfyllfa, a mae hyn yn cael rhan o'i rhan o sefydigcwp sydd hefyd yn panthag o hyd yn blaid. человека fel yw i'u gwasanaethau yn y gynghordd. Nicola Sturgeon oedd hyn. Genub oedd eu gwyro Association srif wedi ei fyw oedd nef ar gyfer y gallu gwasanaethau, os ymweld dwci o'u gwasanaethau, oedd mae ei gwasanaethau o'r rhaid o'r newid. Ffawr i'n gweithiwyr yw hwn o'r gwasanaethau the SNP, is not a vote for another referendum. Will she have the decency to tell votes before they vote that she will use the election as another excuse for a divisive referendum, or, once again, will she wait until that day after? The mandate for another referendum, which was sought and won at the Scottish Parliament elections for Scotland against the Tories, is about who will stop the Tories silencing i'r oesod. Kezia Dugdale yw ni'n brif i ddaf am bach nesaf a i organised iawn i gael s scenes o riddym peth fel torynau y trofii ar y cyflawn. Ben i ddim yn ei ddaf i ddim yn ei ddaf. Nid i fwyaf rhaid o'r oesod o'r s scenes o riddym peth fel torynau o rhaid o'i cyflawn i gael s scenes o brif. Felly iawn yn rhaid o'r s scenes o brif iawn i Gael i gael s scenes o brif iawn i gael s scenes o brif iawn i gael s scenes o brif iawn i gael s scenes o brifiau panelectable ac utterly useless. That is the tragedy of UK politics right now. So it brings us back to the central point. The only thing in this election— and I would ask every voter out there to think about that seriously. The Tories want people to think that there is some safe, tactical Tory vote that they can cast in this election. But toras sent in this election every single Tory vote in Scotland will help Theresa May make sure that she has the ability ac eisiau lleiaethu gwybreddiadau i ddyddio'r byw ei wneud. A wnaeth i ddod, iawn i gyntafol gweithio Torrey Sirwyr, a wnaeth i Анwb o prewynedd, a wnaeth i ddau'r bobl dysgu, a wnaeth i ddweud drwy honi Torrey Sirwyr, wnaeth i ddweud eu bobl sydd dyfodol SNP yn Sgotland. Rhyw gwybodur rhai, Willie Rennie. Rhaid i d сказалаw i ddim ni'n mynd i ddweud ar ddych yn gweithredu gyda'r gyffredin. Rhyw gwybodur? ond o gweston o'r Pwg. The SNP's Deputy Leader, Angus Robertson, struggled to explain his party's Europe policy on the radio yesterday. Five times he was asked what policy would be in the manifesto for the general election. Five times asked, five times he wasn't able to answer. He became so desperate he even asked all the listeners to write in with suggestions. It was answers on a postcard. ond y First Minister will have a chance to influence that. Does she want full membership of the European Union in the SNP manifesto? The First Minister has said that the policy of the SNP on Europe is absolutely clear. We want Scotland to remain members of the European Union, but I do not think that there is anybody who could have missed that for the past few months. However, it is interesting, is it not? Wille Rennie somehow tries to criticise I quando I said that yes, I want Scotland and the UK to remain in the EU. But I think, what's really important, is that we prioritize membership of the single market. It's interesting that he criticizes me. It's what Tim Farron, his own leader, says. He wants the UK to stay in the european single market. The priority is staying in the single market. There's no doubt about my policy. I want Scotland to remain in the EU. I think the doubt is what in earth the Liberal Democrat policy is on this matter ond. Willie Rennie? If the policy is that clear, why can't she just say that it is going to be in the manifesto? That would be clear. She is dodging just like Angus yesterday. The Liberal Democrats, in contrast, are crystal clear. We want Scotland in the heart of the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom in the heart of Europe. The general election is a chance to change the course of the whole of the United Kingdom. The more Liberal Democrat MPs elected, the greater the chance we have of changing the direction of the country. Just like the moment she joined the SNP all these years ago, the First Minister has only ever cared about independence. We know what she and her Government are up to. She is trying to get Brexit supporters back onside so that she is going soft on Europe. It is fair to ask if EU membership will be in the manifesto. What is the First Minister's answer? Is she going to tell us? Let me try it in simpler words. I support membership of the European Union. Surely even Willie Rennie can understand that. There was another politician dodging questions yesterday, was not there? I saw Tim Farran challenged in the House of Commons by Stuart MacDonald, one of my excellent colleagues in Westminster. Tim Farran was challenged by Stuart MacDonald to rule out supporting a Tory Government. He refused to do so. Labour is unelectable. The Liberal Democrats propped the Tories up for five years and will not rule out doing it again. If you want to have Scotland's voice heard against the Tories, if you want Scotland to be protected against the Tories, if you want a party that stands up against the Tories, then there is only one party that will do that—the SNP. I have a couple of supplementaries. The first is from Gillian Martin. How is the Scottish Government standing up for human rights in the face of Tory attempts to scrap the human rights act? We will oppose vigorously any attempts to scrap the human rights act. We know that if the Tories get their way, that is exactly what they want to do, which makes it all the more ironic that Ruth Davidson is talking about work overseas—one of the worst things that the UK could do, and the worst message that it could send internationally is to be seen to roll back on human rights, and the SNP will always oppose that and always stand up for human rights. Neil Findlay. Will the First Minister confirm that airport expansion, new flight routes and the scrapping of air passenger duty are all Government policy? Does she agree with me that it is rank hypocrisy for MSPs, MPs and Government ministers to pretend to their constituents that they oppose those policies when, all the while, they compliantly voted them through in Cabinet? The First Minister. I want Scotland to have the best possible connections with the rest of the world, because that is good not just for people in Scotland. It is also good for our businesses seeking to expand and to export more overseas. I make no apology for wanting our aviation connections as well as our other transport connections to be as good as they possibly can be. I am also very clear about our responsibilities to tackle climate change, and this Government and indeed this Parliament should be proud for the world-leading action that it has taken to tackle climate change as well. Question 4, Maureed Todd. To ask the First Minister whether she will provide an update on her visit to the United States. First Minister. Yes. I visited the United States between 2 and 7 April, attending events and meetings in California and New York. The big visit focused on trade and investment, boosting tourism, sharing best practice across the public and private sector, and promoting Scottish innovation, entrepreneurship and culture. The relationship between Scotland and America is an important one with deep and long-standing ties, reflected by the strong economic, cultural and personal links of our citizens. This visit was an important opportunity to assure businesses and visitors from the US that Scotland is an outward-looking, welcoming country and remains very open for business. Maureed Todd. I thank the First Minister for that answer. I was particularly pleased to see climate action was on high on the agenda, with the First Minister signing a climate deal with the Governor of California. In the highlands and islands and throughout Scotland, renewables are transforming communities, creating employment and helping us to meet our climate targets. While the Tories at Westminster trash subsidies for green energy, how can we continue to meet our global obligations to tackling climate change in partnership with allies around the world? It is important to stress that Scotland is making huge progress in delivering our climate change ambitions, but we have still got much to achieve. I met the Governor of California in the US to discuss how our two Administrations can work together to achieve our shared ambition of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We have pledged to cut emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. We have also discussed the importance of offshore wind in tackling climate change and agreed to share knowledge and best practice in developing that technology. We have also offered to help the under 2 coalition, representing over 1 billion people, to prepare for a major summit in 2018 aimed at persuading national governments to increase their efforts to tackle climate change. However, there is no doubt that many of the policies of this current UK Government fly in the face of our efforts to tackle climate change. One of the other reasons why it is so important that we continue to have voices in Westminster arguing for the kind of policies that will support us, not hinder us, in meeting those ambitions. Jackson Carlaw I was amused to see the First Minister under a banner describing herself as the Queen of Scots. It is not quite how I hear her described nearer to home. The Speaker of the United States, Paul Ryan, is currently in London and has made clear that the United States Government wishes to come to an expedited trade arrangement with the United Kingdom when we leave the European Union. Can I ask the First Minister when she was in the United States what formal discussions she had with the Government of the United States about future trade relationships and what assurances she gave to them that the Scottish Government would be doing everything that they could to ensure that that early trade deal is arrived at? The First Minister I am glad that Jackson Carlaw watched the woman in the world summit that he mentions because I hope that he also heard during that summit the gasps of horror from the audience, the very large audience that was there listening when I outlined the rape clause policy that had come into effect. Jackson Carlaw says that I misrepresented it. Let me set it out very clearly for the chamber. The rape clause policy puts an obligation on a woman to prove that she has been raped if she wants to claim tax credits for more than two children. If Jackson Carlaw thinks that that is a misrepresentation, I invite him to come to this chamber and tell us exactly what the rape clause policy then entails. To do what Ruth Davidson failed to do and actually have the courage to say that it is morally reprehensible to have such a policy on the statute. On the issue, I met a number of businesses and other economic interests in the United States. I did not have meetings with the US Government. This was a trade and investment-focused visit. In every conversation and visit that I had, the message was clear that Scotland remains open for business. Of course, it is all the more important, given the Tory's Brexit obsession, that we get that message out not just in the United States but every country across the world. Question 5 Edward Mountain. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the reports of defects found in school buildings. The health, safety and wellbeing of pupils and staff while at schools is of paramount importance. Following the publication of the independent inquiry into Edinburgh schools construction, the Minister for Local Government wrote to all local authorities, highlighting the issues and recommendations that the report raised. The minister underlined the importance of adhering to building regulations, technical standards and the inspection processes that are in place to protect the public. The minister has also written to and met with leaders in the construction industry to ensure that they are aware of the findings and recommendations in the report and to ensure that we can rely on quality workmanship and control processes. Edward Mountain. Thank you First Minister for that answer. I accept that it is local authorities who have the statutory responsibility for school buildings. The Scottish Government surely has a duty to ensure that those responsibilities were deployed following the publication of the Edinburgh schools report. It is indeed why I raised the safety issues regarding WIC campus with the First Minister on 26 January this year, which she chose to sideline. Can the First Minister now explain why it has taken problems in 72 schools across Scotland for the Scottish Government to take this matter seriously? Will she now provide an unequivocal guarantee that all work is being done with local authorities to ensure that all buildings, school buildings, are safe across Scotland? First Minister. A number of points. First, I note later on in FMQs that Adam Tomkins is going to ask me a question challenging me to leave all responsibilities that are not those of the Scottish Government specifically to local authorities and not to interfere in local authorities' responsibilities. So there is a bit of a constituency issue. However, I accept that the Scottish Government has responsibilities. That is why I set out the action that the Scottish Government has taken. I would say to the member that we did not wait for the independent report. We wrote to local authorities in the way that I have described shortly after the Oxgang school situation arose last year, so we acted promptly as the public would have expected us to do. It is also important to note that none of the schools requiring remedial work were built under this Government's current schools programme. Those are historic school building projects. Nevertheless, A, we have to make sure that all school buildings are safe and that lessons from previous PFI programmes are properly learned and implemented in the future. The Government is absolutely determined that we will discharge our responsibility to do so. Kenneth Gibson. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Of course, the schools that are in question were built by Labour and the Liberal Democrats under PFI. The First Minister will know that, in North Ayrshire, the Labour-run council built four new schools a decade ago with construction costs of £81 million, yet between 2007 and 2037, £401 million will have to be paid in unitary charges to the companies that built them, including £12.7 million this year. That is how equivalent of buying an £81,000 flat, paying a mortgage of £1114 a month for 30 years and then not even owning it at the end of those 30 years. Does the First Minister agree that Labour's reckless handling of our public finance is whilst in office continues to rob North Ayrshire and much of Scotland of funds that could be used to put towards delivering better local services and that it is high time that Labour apologised for the legacy of incompetence that left our schools, North Ayrshire and local authorities across Scotland? The First Minister. Yes, I do, but while it is fair to point out that the inquiry said that the financing method was not in itself responsible for defective construction, it does state that the implementation of the contract by the partners involved could have been stronger. Questions must be asked and in due course answered about all PFI contracts that many at the time feared put profits before quality. The cost of Labour's disastrous PFI deals are still taking significant sums of money away from vital public services. The Government is determined to secure maximum value for money in existing PFI contracts. The Scottish Futures Trust works on behalf of ministers and has done so for some time with public bodies to identify the scope to improve the efficiency and performance of those contracts and that work will continue. However, I do think that this whole episode has raised some serious questions for previous Labour administrations and one day perhaps they will have to answer and yes, apologise. Daniel Johnson. Thank you, Presiding Officer. This is an issue that has had a distinct impact on my constituency. A year ago, the pupils at St Peter's primary school had to go elsewhere. Libertant high school had to host neighbouring gracement high school and dozens of families sent their children to Oxgangs live in my constituency. The underlying issue was the failure of contractors to install tyrods in the walls of those school buildings, a failure that was not picked up by building control. Indeed, now we learn that there are scores of school buildings across Scotland which similarly have similar structural faults again which were failed to be picked up by building control. Clearly, there are issues here about the sign-off procedure, the way building control works and fundamentally the safety checks. Can the First Minister tell Parliament what changes and reviews will be made of the building control process in regime? That is a very fair question. I want to respond to two aspects of the member's question. First, to recognise the disruption that is caused for pupils across Edinburgh last year, the independent report says that the negative educational impact on children is likely to have been relatively limited, but I do not think that that takes away from the disruption and the concern that pupils and parents had last year, particularly for older pupils that would have been needing exams. I think that everybody deeply regrets that. Secondly, the issue about scrutiny of work and building control processes is one that we have to reflect very carefully on. We have to make sure that there is an appropriate level of independent scrutiny of building work. The Government is reviewing all existing guidance on appropriate supervision and contract management so that we can be assured that best practice is available as a matter of course in all construction projects. Those are schools that were not built in the main under this Government, but that does not change the fact that, as the incumbent Government now, we have to make sure that the right lessons are learned and that those lessons are applied in future. We are absolutely determined that we will do that. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports of sexually exploitative behaviour in the private rented housing sector. First Minister. I was extremely concerned and horrified to read the reports that the member refers to. The Minister for Housing has already written to the website that hosted those adverts asking them to take action. As a Government, we are already taking action to tackle issues like that through the implementation of Equally Safe, which is our strategy to tackle any violence against women and girls. We are also taking action, of course, to improve the availability of and access to housing for everyone in action to tackle poverty and inequality, which can so often render people vulnerable to being exploited in this kind of way. Any person always has the right to refuse to consent to sexual activity and forcing someone in any way to participate in sexual activity is a crime. We continue to keep all laws under review to ensure that they are fit for purpose in tackling what I think are unacceptable behaviours. Clare Baker. I thank the First Minister for her response. We know that those sex for rent adverts have been posted online for properties in Scotland, but we have no way of knowing how many tenants are currently in those arrangements. As the First Minister says, the practice does open the door to vulnerable tenants who are often facing homelessness and poverty and are finding themselves in commercially exploitative arrangements. I welcome the First Minister's reports of the action that has been taken by the housing minister, but I ask her what action the Government will take to ensure that any landlords who are found to be offering such arrangements are properly dealt with. More specifically, what action is being taken through the Equally Safe project. I also had time to have discussions with any groups who are supporting vulnerable women who are seeking accommodation to raise awareness of those exploitative practices. Let me assure the member that we will look carefully at what action we can take further to what we are already doing across all of those areas. The minister will be very happy to meet the member to discuss this in more detail if that would be of interest to her. She raises particularly the situation of landlords, and where landlords are behaving unacceptably, clearly there are provisions to seek to deal with that. I suspect that in cases such as the one that she is highlighting, often the problem will be that there is no formal tenancy agreement. Those are informal arrangements, which do not make them any more acceptable—in fact, much less so—but sometimes that will be one of the challenges. Those are not formal arrangements where there is a recognised or registered landlord. Nevertheless, those are serious issues. Obviously, there are wider issues involved around that kind of thing, but I will undertake to ensure that the minister considers all the suggestions made by the member and the offer of a meeting stands if the member wishes to take it up. Patrick Harvie I recognise that the First Minister acknowledges that not all those circumstances will involve a registered landlord, but in order to register landlords have to comply with a fit and proper person test, is it not pretty clear that any such exploitative arrangements should lead to an automatic fail of the fit and proper person test and revocation of any existing landlord registration? First Minister My simple and straightforward answer to that question would be yes. I struggle to see how anybody who placed an advert of this description would pass the fit and proper person test. Patrick Harvie and other members, indeed, will be aware that there is a proper statutory and legal process that local authorities have to go through before they can take landlord status away from somebody. Obviously, I could not pre-empt that in any situation, but we are all agreed about the unacceptability of the examples that have been brought to the chamber's attention. Just as I did with the previous member, I will undertake to discuss this with the relevant minister to make sure that the Scottish Government is taking whatever appropriate action we are able to take. Adam Tomkins To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's position is on Reform Scotland's view that local authorities should be responsible for all matters that are not specifically reserved to the Scottish Parliament. First Minister First Lady, maybe the Tories should start practising what they preach occasionally on some of those issues. Local authority responsibilities are very clearly set out, and the focus of the Scottish Government is on encouraging councils to empower communities across the country. I think that it is important that we do not just consider what power local authorities should have, but also how local authorities then transfer more of their power to local communities. That is why our community empowerment act puts additional powers into the hands of communities to hold their own local authority to account. We are also discussing with COSLA how to achieve our aim of having at least 1 per cent of council budgets decided in this way, building on the work of our £2 million community choices fund. Adam Tomkins I thank the First Minister for that answer. Yesterday, we published our election manifesto, in which we argued that councils in Scotland should focus on growing their local economies. Cities in England are being given ample new powers to do just that from the northern powerhouse to the midlands engine. Can the First Minister identify even a single power that she would devolve from this Parliament to our cities to enable them to do the same? The First Minister Our local authorities already have a power of general competence. There is nothing standing in the way of local authorities already getting on with the job that they should be doing, and many are doing well in terms of growing their local economies. As the member is aware, the Government has also promoted and delivered some times in partnership with the UK Government city deal, so that we are not only making sure that there is devolved power in the hands of local authorities, but that there is substantial additional investment at the disposal of local authorities to do the things that will support economic growth. We will continue to do that. I look forward to seeing many more city deals in the years ahead, not least in this city of Edinburgh and its surrounding areas. I am a great believer in giving local authorities the powers and the resources that they need to do the job in local communities. However, I do not want to see powers stop at local authorities. Real community empowerment is important, too, and that is why the Community Empowerment Act is so important. Andy Wightman I welcome the reform of Scotland paper. It contains a lot with which Greens agree. We believe that local government should have far greater fiscal autonomy than it does do. Some weeks ago, we published proposals for our fiscal framework between Scottish Government and local government. Does the First Minister agree that, just as the Scottish Parliament is getting more fiscal autonomy and just as the Scottish Government has entered a fiscal framework with the UK Government, so, too, should those relationships be mirrored with local government? The First Minister I think that there is some merit in that. Indeed, ahead of the Scottish elections last year, we did indicate a willingness to talk to local authorities about what additional tax powers would lie better with them rather than with the Scottish Government. In fact, Scottish local authorities have already got autonomy in terms of the ability to lower business rates, for example, if they think that that is one of the things that would help to grow their economy. That is a discussion that the Government is certainly very willing to have. Obviously, we have local government elections in just a couple of weeks' time, and after those elections, with new Administrations, hopefully in some parts of the country, that is a discussion that across the political spectrum, we can take forward with new Administrations and councils the length and breadth of the country. Alex Rowley Back in 2007, the First Minister said that the council tax was unfair and that no amount of tinkering with the council tax could make it fair. Does she believe that the council tax is still unfair or has the tinkering with the bans made it fairer? The First Minister The rebanding, yes, has made the council tax fairer, but I would say two things to Labour. First, during the first term of the SNP administration, Labour blocked the abolition of the council tax, so it ill-beholds it now to stand up here and somehow argue for it. The second point that I would make about the council tax is Labour's position on the council tax, which underlines the hypocrisy sometimes at the heart of their arguments. Labour published its local government manifesto this week, and in that manifesto, on page 6, it says that the SNP council tax freeze has crippled local government. As well as being complete nonsense, that statement right now is utter hypocrisy, and I will tell you why it is utter hypocrisy, because right now in Scotland there are only eight council administrations proposing a continuation of the council tax freeze. And guess what? Every single one of those eight councils is a Labour-led council, so there you have it. Labour might say one thing in this chamber about the council tax, but their administrations across the country do the complete opposite. That concludes First Minister's questions. We move on to members' business in the name of Claire Hockey. We'll just take a few moments to change seats for members to change seats.