 We now turn to First Minister's Questions. Question number one, Ruth Davidson. Thank you, Presiding Officer, to ask the First Minister what engagement she has planned for the rest of the day. First Minister. Engagement is to take forward the Government's programme for Scotland, including discussions with the Cabinet Secretary for the Economy to follow up in the welcome resumption of production yesterday at the DL steel plant. Ruth Davidson. I'd like to thank the First Minister for that answer. To ask her, is she in favour of shale gas being used in Scotland? First Minister. Ruth Davidson is well aware of the position of the Scottish Government. We are taking a cautious, evidence-based approach to the issue of shale gas and fracking. I think that that is the right approach. Given the range of environmental health, transport, community impact concerns that have been raised, we have a number of research exercises under way right now. Those will report over the next few weeks. They will be followed by a full public consultation. When that is ended, the Scottish Government will come to a considered judgment. Given the seriousness of the issue, that is the right and proper way to proceed. Ruth Davidson. Interesting, because the Gamel report was due out in the summer on Saturdays October. Let's set out for a moment this Government's principled stance on shale. For the last year, when it comes to shale gas in this country, they've lept on their high horse, preached about a moratorium and boasted that they're the planet's best friend. But when the gas is poured into a tanker and shipped all the way across the Atlantic to our shores, then they turn a blind eye and hope that if they ignore it, then everybody else will too. Now, not surprisingly, the First Minister and our Cabinet have refused absolutely every media opportunity to talk about this issue this week. So let me give her the chance now. Can she explain the SNP's total double standards on this matter? First Minister. Obviously, the decision about the import of shale gas to Grangemouth is a decision taken by Ineos, which is a company that is absolutely free to take those decisions. Ineos, of course, is an extremely important company in the Scottish economy. In terms of the issue of fracking in Scotland, I appreciate the position of the Scottish Government of the Scottish Conservatives is to ride rough shod over local opinion, over environmental concerns, over the range of other concerns that have been raised. That is a position that Ruth Davidson is perfectly entitled to argue. I think that it's better to take the evidence-based precautionary approach that this Government is taking, because we shouldn't play fast and loose with our environment. So we will continue to undertake the work that we have set out. The detail of that work is well known. When those research projects report, we will embark on a full public consultation. Everybody, with any opinion or any interest in this issue, including the Scottish Conservatives, will be able to contribute to that consultation. I think that when we take account of all the issues involved here, that is absolutely the right and responsible way to proceed, and it's what the Scottish Government will continue to do. Ruth Davidson. The First Minister has already ignored her own experts on this. If you go to the Scottish Government's own website from 2014, the results of their expert advice are there for everyone to see. Let me try another question. It's quite possible that shale gas in the rest of the UK will get the go-ahead soon if local communities back it. If it does, providers say that much of that gas will go to Grangemouth and will end up in the national grid powering many Scottish homes. We could end up with a ban on Scottish gas but with Scottish homes reliant on English gas to keep the pipes warm. Is the First Minister entirely comfortable with that? Yes. First Minister. I know that the Scottish Conservatives are a party controlled by London, but in the era of devolution, I think that it's right that we take the decisions about fracking in Scotland here, in Scotland and in our national Parliament, and that's what we will continue to do. Given the concerns that have been raised both domestically here in Scotland and other parts of the UK and indeed in many other countries, we will continue to take that evidence-based approach. I will leave Ruth Davidson to explain to communities across the central belt of Scotland why her party would choose to ride roughshod over the concerns that have been raised. In terms of energy, of course this is an important decision and it's a decision that will be considered carefully by the Scottish Government, but I thought that Ruth Davidson might want the opportunity to talk positively about the record levels of renewable energy generation that we're seeing in Scotland now. Some of the world-leading projects in tidal energy and offshore wind that are being taken forward in Scotland, but of course the Tory Government and Westminster is more interested right now in undermining renewable energy than they are in supporting it. We will continue to take decisions that are right for Scotland and right for our future energy needs. I will leave Ruth Davidson to explain her position to communities across Scotland. Ruth Davidson. The First Minister might want to pick her own questions, but she still got no answer to the one that she's being asked. I'm not surprised, because this is the First Minister that doesn't want to admit that her Government's failure on energy will leave us reliant on others to keep our homes heated. There are 10,000 jobs in central Scotland that are reliant on shale gas coming here from other countries, but we still have no answers on shale gas at home. I fully accept that there are differing views on that, but nobody is well served by a Government that hides from view and kicks this into the long grass. The moratorium was announced nearly two years ago. Her Government has been overtaken by events because the first tanker arrived this week. Will the First Minister give the country some proper answers and when are they coming from her? We have set out the timescale for the reviews. The moratorium is in place while those reviews are under way. The process and the timescale was described by Friends of the Earth as a well-designed process over a sensible timescale. I would agree with that. I have to say that being lectured on energy by a representative of the party that is pouring public money into the white elephant that is Hinckley Point really is a bit rich. I do say again that Ruth Davidson has managed to ask a series of questions about energy today and has somehow managed to forget to mention the statistics out today that show 2016 on track to be a record year for renewable generation in Scotland. That is a real success story, and I think that we have just heard that the Scottish Conservatives do not like talking about success stories in Scotland. Question number two, Kezia Dugdale. Do you ask the First Minister when she will next meet the National Autistic Society Scotland? First Minister. Let me pay tribute to the invaluable work that the National Autistic Society Scotland does to help support people with autism in our local communities. This month, the Minister for Child Care and Early Years made a speech at the 11th Autism Europe Congress in Edinburgh, and he will soon meet the director of the National Autistic Society Scotland. Kezia Dugdale. That is hugely welcome. Thank you. On the steps of Bute House, the day after May's election, the First Minister said this. We will always respect the people now and in the future. We simply ask that other parties do likewise. Last night, this Parliament, the representatives of the people of Scotland, spoke with one voice on the planned cuts to local NHS services. Will the First Minister now respect the will of this Parliament? Kezia Dugdale raises an important issue. It is important firstly to emphasise that no decisions have been taken on any of those proposed service changes. It is also important to stress, as the health secretary did yesterday, that there is a well-established and long-standing process in place to consider proposals for service change. The early stages of that process, which Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board are currently engaged in, inform the judgment about whether or not a particular service change is to be considered major, and therefore ultimately decided by ministers. When the long-established process has reached the stage where that judgment can be made, the health secretary will report it to Parliament and in reaching that judgment, of course, she will take account of the debate and the decision of the Scottish Parliament yesterday. We recognise that there is a due process. That is why we are angry at the SNP candidates. During the election, promised people that these services were safe when they were not. The truth is that, as a Parliament, we agreed that the health secretary should call and propose cuts by health boards in Glasgow, Lanarkshire and the Lothians. That is because these services are vital to communities across the country, but they are now at risk. Maternity services at the Vale of Leven, the Lightburn hospital in Glasgow, cleft pallet services in the Lothians and many, many more. Now that the Parliament has spoken, will she immediately call these decisions in and reject the planned cuts? This is another example of the complete incoherence at the heart of Scottish Labour. Kezia Dugdale says that she recognises that there is a due process. It is a five-stage process. Here it is. Anybody can read it on the website of the Scottish Health Council. At a certain stage of that process, the decision about whether or not a service change is a major one is taken. When we reach that point, the health secretary will take that decision, take account of the views of the Scottish health council and take account of the views of this Parliament. We can week out. We have the Labour Party standing up in this chamber accusing this Government of undermining local decision making. Today we have them standing up and demanding that we undermine local decision making. It is an absolute shambles. We will continue to follow due process. The last point that I would make, Presiding Officer, is this one. We will take no lessons from Labour when it comes to standing up for local health services because, unlike Labour, we have demonstrated as a Government time and again our willingness to actually block changes when they are not in the interests of patients. When Labour were in government, they simply sat to one side and allowed services, like the Vale of Leven accident and emergency unit, to close. Labour allowed services to close, but this Government protects local services. If the First Minister did it then, she could do it now. There is a democratic process here called the will of this Parliament. Shona Robison told this Parliament that services at the Royal Alexandra, the Vale of Leven and the Lightburn would be maintained, yet each face major cuts. George Adam said that we were scaremongering when we said that services in Paisley were at risk, yet cuts are on their way. Before the election, the SNP told people that local services were safe. Even the First Minister did it on the front of the Greenock telegraph. This Parliament has now said that promises made before the election must be delivered on. If the vote of this Parliament, elected by the people of Scotland, does not make the First Minister keep her promises, just what will? Unless Labour is taking the position—and I assume that Labour is not taking the position—that local health services never ever change, no matter the change in demand or demographics, surely they must accept that there is a process that we go through to consider and reach judgments on those changes. That process is long established. It has been in place for years. Here it is and when we get to the particular stage in the process that the health secretary has to decide whether it is major service change, that is what she will do. I say again, week after week, we have the Labour Party accusing this Government of overriding local decision making. Today what they want is to do is to override local decision making. We will do the right thing. It is because of this Government—let us never forget this—it is because of this SNP Government that we still have an accident emergency in Monklands. We still have an accident emergency service in Ayr, light burn hospital, because we stepped in and prevented its closure. Vale of leave and emergency services are only there because this Government stopped the trend that Labour had started to remove them completely. We stand up for local services. Labour used to stand aside while they were closed. I have a couple of constituency questions. First of all, Mary Evans. I am sure that the First Minister will share my concern at the news of potential job losses at Agee Bar, including a number of sites in Angus in my constituency, as well as in Cumbernauld. Although consultation on redundancies is still at a very early stage, can I ask the First Minister what support the Scottish Government will give to assist the business and the staff affected at this challenging time? Of course, I was disappointed to learn of potential job losses at Agee Bar. This will obviously be an anxious time for the company's employees, their families and the local communities in both Forfer and Cumbernauld. Scottish Enterprise is working closely with the company to understand any potential impacts on the two Scottish sites and to establish where and how they can support the sites and the workforce. In the unfortunate and, hopefully, avoidable event that any redundancies precede, the Scottish Government stands ready to assist those affected through our PACE initiative for helping people faced with a redundancy situation. The economy secretary will be very happy to engage with local members of Parliament as this situation becomes clearer. John Finnie. Thank you, Presiding Officer. First Minister, you will be aware that Highlands and Islands Enterprise, such as Highlands and Islands Development Board before, provides a valuable role in the Highlands and Islands. That is because of its dual remate of not only economic but also community benefit. You will be aware of press speculation regarding its future. Can you give an assurance that those two important functions will continue to be discharged by high in the Highlands and Islands? First Minister? Yes. Highlands and Islands Enterprise does a fantastic job. It has done a fantastic job over the last 50 years. I can give the assurance to the member that we will make sure that it is in a position to continue to carry out those functions and provide the excellent services that it does to the Highlands of Scotland. Liam McArthur. Thank you, Presiding Officer. The First Minister may be aware that agreement was reached earlier this week between Orkney Islands Council and Historic Environment Scotland that will allow Mazehow, my constituency, to be reopened as an absolute key component of Orkney's world heritage site closure of Mazehow would have had disastrous effects on the local tourism industry. Does she accept that a planned shuttle bus service can only be a temporary solution? Will she encourage Historic Environment Scotland, therefore? The planning permission that it already has for a visitor centre, car park and pedestrian underpass so that Orkney's world-class attractions are served by world-class facilities? First Minister? Yes. I am very happy to encourage those discussions to continue to proceed. Obviously, health and safety both for visitors and staff at Mazehow is of the utmost importance, so I welcome the collaboration between Historic Environment Scotland and Orkney Islands Council on this project. They have worked hard to develop an interim solution, but they continue to work towards a sustainable long-term solution to enhance and enrich the tourism offer in Orkney. I know that Liam McArthur will continue to be very closely engaged in this, and I would be happy to ensure that the relevant minister corresponds with him as this situation develops. One thing is absolute sure Mazehow is one of the world-class attractions in Orkney, and we want to do everything possible to ensure that it continues to be so. Question 3, Patrick Harvie. To ask the First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet. First Minister? On Tuesday. Mr Harvie. One of the first debates that Parliament had when we returned from the summer break was about refugees. The First Minister and her colleagues backed a green amendment calling for the devolution of the services around accommodation and support that asylum seekers in our communities need. Since then, the most significant change that we have seen is an announcement by press release from Serco that they will be taking over the provision of accommodation services from Orchard and Shipman. What involvement did the Scottish Government have, or awareness or communication, either with those private sector providers or with the UK Government in advance of that decision? Has the Scottish Government been able to exercise any influence at all in this decision, and how does the First Minister react to it? Firstly, we are and have said before that we are deeply concerned about the continued allegations about standards of asylum accommodation and some allegations about mistreatment of asylum seekers. As Patrick Harvie knows and has indicated in his question, the issue of asylum seeker accommodation is a reserved matter. These are not our decisions. We frequently make our views on these matters known to the UK Government, but they are decisions of the UK Government. I would very much like to see those decisions devolved to this Parliament. The community's secretary is due to meet with the UK minister for immigration early next month, I think, in the next two weeks, and will raise those issues with him when he does so. I understand that the community's secretary is also meeting with the Scottish Refugee Council later today, and I'm sure that those issues will be raised there as well. These are issues of utmost importance because they go to the very heart of how we treat some of the most vulnerable people in our society. I can give the chamber an assurance that we will continue to press the case for dignity in how we treat asylum seekers very strongly with the UK Government. Patrick Harvie. I welcome that response, and I once again encourage the Scottish Government to be proactive in putting together a public sector bid to take on the provision of these services. We know that the Scottish public sector and Scottish NGOs and charities can provide these services to a higher standard of dignity than is being done at present. As well as that, the UK Government is putting pressure on Scottish local authorities to expand the asylum dispersal programme. That may well be a legitimate goal, but it has to be done in a decent way and a way that involves negotiation and respect with communities and local authorities. If that happens, the Scottish Government does have a role because designation orders to achieve that UK objective would require Scottish ministers consent. Can I ask the First Minister to ensure that that purchase on the issue that the Scottish Government now has is used to the maximum to advocate not only for an asylum dispersal programme that meets the needs of people at a humanity level, at a basis of respecting their humanity, but also ensures that local authorities are provided with resources to provide the service to a high standard and that these services are brought back into the public sector as a matter of urgency? The short answer to that question is yes, but I suspect that Patrick Harvie wants me to give a slightly longer one. Our position in principle has always been that we think that asylum accommodation should be provided in the public sector. I am certainly happy with Angela Constance to give consideration to Patrick Harvie's suggestion about a public sector bid, whether that would be a feasible thing to do and I am happy to engage further with him on that. On the question about asylum-seeker dispersal, yes, we will use any and whatever influence we have to the maximum to try to make sure that the arrangements for looking after asylum seekers are as humane and dignified as we would all want them to be. We have, of course, some considerably experienced in that respect in terms of the programme for welcoming Syrian refugees to Scotland. Many of them went to areas other than Glasgow around Scotland and there was very good engagement through our task force with local authorities and other agencies to make sure that all the support arrangements were in place there. I think that we have some very useful experience to bring to bear. I am happy to ask Angela Constance to engage in more detail with Patrick Harvie about some of the detail underlying those issues, but if I can just end by giving an assurance that we will always seek to act on this issue in a way that prioritises the humanity and dignity of the support that we give asylum seekers here in Scotland. Clare Baker. The First Minister will be aware of the reported crime statistics that were published this week, and while they show a welcome drop in overall crime, there is a worrying increase in sexual crimes. This is partly due to an increased number of victims prepared to come forward, but there are growing concerns that we are seeing more and more sexual crimes involving young people, particularly online, such as the sharing of images and videos. Can I ask the First Minister to consider the call from Rake Crisis Scotland for more support for its sexual violence prevention project so that it is able to reach every secondary school in the country? Yes, we will consider that. We work closely with Rake Crisis Scotland, and I think that Clare Baker is absolutely right to say that we should not in any way be complacent about the trend in sexual offences, particularly in these days of social media and online activity. There is a real need to ensure that education and awareness are prioritised. I am absolutely sure that Clare Baker would recognise the point that I am about to make. There is a sense and a suspicion that, in years gone by, sexual offences have been under-reported, and therefore a lot of work has gone in to trying to encourage and support people to come forward to report sexual offences. Indeed, Clare Baker mentioned Rake Crisis Scotland earlier this week when the statistics were published. The national coordinator of Rake Crisis Scotland said that it is important that people of confidence in reporting sexual crime changes introduced by the police in recent years have transformed how sexual crime is investigated, and it is likely that at least some of the increase in recorded sexual crime is due to people having more confidence to report what has happened to them. We should welcome that, and we should continue to give people that confidence. Clare Baker is absolutely right that we should not take an eye off the ball on some of the underlying trends, and I will make sure that her specific suggestion is followed up. Bill Kidd. First Minister, this morning, there are reports that the UK Government has spent £65 million establishing Brexit departments, but they seem still to have no plan in place. Does the First Minister agree that it is time that the Prime Minister sets out exactly what Brexit means? Yes, I do. We are now more than three months on since the referendum, and we have no greater clarity today than we did on 23 June about exactly what Brexit means. I think that the UK Government, the Prime Minister in particular, has to start to set out the detail of that very, very soon. Indeed, I am not the only one making comments like that. I notice two Conservative MPs making similar comments today, Ken Clark and Nicky Morgan, the former education secretary, making the point that, if the UK Government does not start to define what Brexit means, then other people are going to start to do that for them. I think that we need to see the UK Government get a grip here. I want to see the UK take a negotiating position that keeps us in the single market. I know that that is a position that Ruth Davidson used to support. I do not think that she does any more. She has become a bit of a born-again here, but nevertheless I hope that common sense prevails, but we need to start seeing the detail and we need to start seeing it soon. Ross Thomson. To ask the First Minister, in light of the £5 million GMC investigation into the conduct of eight consultants at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, clearing all eight of wrongdoing, what action will the First Minister take to reform management practices in NHS Grampian? Obviously, that was an investigation by the general medical council. Concerns were raised. They have been investigated in the normal way, and a conclusion has been reached. Obviously, it is for the local health board in Grampian to take any conclusions and to learn any lessons from that, and the health secretary will ensure that that happens and will be very happy to correspond further with the member if he has further questions on the issue. Gillian Martin. Thank you, Presiding Officer. While the SNP Government has stepped in to save Scotland's steel industry, Ferguson's shipyard and Prestwick Airport from closure and invested in support for oil and gas workers, does the First Minister agree that it is high time for the UK Government to step up and take decisive action on the exploration and development in the North Sea, or else take the blame for one of the most shameful betrayals in Scotland's industrial history? First Minister. Yes, I do agree with that question. Obviously, we had earlier this week. This is quite an important matter and a serious issue for the oil and gas sector in Scotland. I think that people should perhaps show it slightly more respect. We had the report from Oil and Gas UK this week showing the work that the oil and gas industry has done to reduce its costs to become more efficient so that it can be sustainable and, hopefully, competitive in an era of lower oil prices. I visited Aberdeen last Monday and met with Oil and Gas UK and discussed in more detail the work that was done, but one of the key themes coming through that meeting and coming through much of what we hear around oil and gas is the need for further support for exploration because it is today's exploration that is the production of tomorrow. We saw this in the report this week. There are still 20 billion barrels potentially of oil to be exploited in the North Sea, but unless we have the exploration happening now, the danger is that we do not get the benefit of that. I would call on the UK Government ahead of the autumn statement to announce additional action that it has done previously on investment around exploration so that we can continue to support the oil and gas sector as it comes through these difficult times. Murdo Fraser. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Given the number of the First Minister's Westminster colleagues now helping the police with their inquiries, is the First Minister confident that Police Scotland has the resources to deal with this upsurge in their workload? As the member is aware, we have committed to real terms protection of the police revenue budget, which over this Parliament will ensure that it has an additional £100 million to spend. I think that that is a particular achievement when we consider that, since 2010, the Conservative Government in London has cut our budget by 5% in real terms. Bruce Crawford. To ask the First Minister whether she can explain how any political party can claim to be autonomous from London by relying on money from London to keep them afloat. First Minister. I do not think that any political party that relies on its London parent party for funding can claim to be autonomous. That would seem to me to be a contradiction in terms. To ask the First Minister what representations the Scottish Government will make to the UK Government to ensure that reciprocal healthcare arrangements are a priority in Brexit negotiations. First Minister. We understand the importance of EU healthcare arrangements that allow Scots to receive necessary healthcare using the European health insurance card in the event of illness and accident while travelling in the European economic area. We also recognise the considerable benefits of being able to travel in the EEA for planned treatment under the S2 scheme and for our state pensioners to receive state healthcare under the S1 scheme when they choose to live in other EEA countries. We will make it absolutely clear to the UK Government that citizens must retain their right to access healthcare in Europe under the various schemes. I am of the view that this must be treated as a priority in Brexit negotiations when they finally take place. Tom Arthur. I thank the First Minister for that answer. I am sure that members across the chamber will share my astonishment that the Tory Government made no contingency plans over the future of the European health insurance card service, meaning potentially hefty medical bills for Scots travelling abroad. Three months on from the EU referendum, has the First Minister had assurances on any services, benefits are right, which we are currently entitled to as members of the EU in the single market, and how the UK Government is working to ensure that we do not lose out on these? First Minister. As I think has become abundantly clear in three months since the referendum, the UK Government did no contingency planning for any aspect of Brexit in the event that it occurred. I think that that is a really shameful abdication of its responsibility. In terms of the specific issue, we have received no assurances to date from the UK Government on the future of the services, the benefits or rights that Scots are currently entitled to as members of the EU and the single market. I think that uncertainty is disconcerting for our businesses, our universities, farmers, fishermen and the Scottish people in general. That is why we will continue to work as hard as we can to protect the interests of Scotland and the people of Scotland as these discussions progress. Elaine Smith. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Given that reciprocal healthcare depends very much on healthcare actually provided in this country, and given what the First Minister said about healthcare earlier, could I ask her if she's actually aware that the decision on removing orthopedic and trauma from Munklands hospital was one of the downgrading options that she stopped 10 years ago and that the decision was made in July with no public consultation? Will she now call it in in line with the will of the Scottish Parliament and try to stop this downgrading? I'm sorry, but I do think that that's actually a supplementary... I'm not sure that's a supplementary on Europe on Brexit talks. Question 5, Douglas Ross. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the comment by the chief constable that it will take a two to three-year adjustment period to balance Police Scotland's finances. First Minister. As I announced in December and read mentioned a few moments ago, we're protecting the police resource budget in real terms in every year of this Parliament, a boost of over £100 million by 2021. The Scottish Government is in regular dialogue with Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority regarding the police budget and the steps that have been taken to manage current pressures. Douglas Ross. I thank the First Minister for that response. The cancellation of the I6 project, which was estimated to cost £60 million, was announced hours after Parliament rose for the summer recess, despite the fact that the Scottish Government were made aware of the termination two weeks before that. Does the First Minister agree that the shambolic failure of that project undermines the great efforts of police officers and staff across the country, dealing with ever-greater demands, including the challenges of dealing with a growing elderly population? First Minister. No, I don't. Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority take decisions that they consider to be appropriate and let's not forget that our police do an absolutely fantastic job, a very difficult job. As we saw from the crime statistics earlier this week, recorded crime is now at a 42-year low in Scotland, something that we should thank every single police officer across our country for. We will continue to work closely with Police Scotland and with the Scottish Police Authority to make sure that pressures on their budgets can be properly managed, and the protection that I have already spoken about will help to protect front-line policing services. As I said a moment ago to Murdo Fraser, it really does beg her belief that Conservative MSPs raise in this chamber issues of public spending when the Conservative Government at Westminster has reduced our budget in real terms since 2010 by 5 per cent. As we saw in the Fraser of Allander report, they look likely to cut our budget over the rest of this Parliament by up to £1.6 billion. If Tory MSPs want to make the case for well-funded public services, can I suggest that they start making that case with our colleagues in Westminster? Christine Grahame. First Minister, would the Conservatives not be better to challenge their own Government into returning the £75 million of VAT held against Police Scotland, the only police service in the whole of the UK that has vac levied on it? First Minister. Absolutely. Christine Grahame is absolutely right. Police Scotland is the only police force in the whole of the UK that has vac levied. So if the Conservatives at Westminster want to ease the burden on Police Scotland, then they can do so at the stroke of a pen by reimbursing the VAT payments, and I call on them today to do that. Question number six, Ian Gray. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to calls by those working with abuse survivors for an urgent investigation into the direction of the national strategy for survivors of childhood abuse. First Minister. We are absolutely committed to preventing and tackling child abuse, and we have consistently engaged with survivors and support organisations across the country to inform our policy and shape services and support. Our current framework builds on the original Survivor Scotland strategy of valuing support groups, and it responds to the most recent evidence of the impacts of child abuse. It specifically responds to what survivors have told us matters most to them. We will of course continue to engage with the organisations that have raised concerns to understand their views more fully and ensure that everybody has an accurate and up-to-date picture of the current approach and evidence base of our strategy. Ian Gray. I thank the First Minister for that answer. Those are difficult and sensitive issues, but they have to be addressed and every day seems to bring fresh concerns. When some of the leaders in the field tell us that the national strategy for survivors of sexual abuse has lost its direction, it deviated from the original survivor strategy and described the key body Survivor Scotland as unacceptable and unethical. It is not enough for the First Minister to provide simple reassurance. We have also heard serious allegations against the head of survivor support in the Scottish Government and we have seen the resignation of two out of three panel members of the Historic Abuse Inquiry amidst allegations of government interference. We do not doubt the sincerity of government efforts to get this right, but the First Minister must accept that, as far as survivors are concerned, the Government is getting it wrong. Will the First Minister personally investigate this and take the action required to correct it? Of course, I will continue to take a personal interest in these issues. The Deputy First Minister has ministerial responsibility for the issues, and, as we have seen in the chamber in recent weeks, it takes these issues extremely seriously. Iain Gray made reference to the independent inquiry. I want to take the opportunity today to stress the independence from government of that inquiry. Deputy First Minister has appointed Lady Smith to chair that inquiry. A respected judge whose appointment removes completely any suggestion of anything other than complete independence. Those are some of the other issues that Iain Gray raises. We take those issues really seriously. Those are complex and sensitive issues. When I answered Iain Gray's original question, I took care to say to him that we will engage with the organisations that have raised those concerns. Firstly, to understand those concerns more fully. Without going into detail, at this stage we would not agree with all those concerns, but we want to make sure we understand them and we will continue to engage with survivors and survivors groups so that we make sure that the arrangements that we have in place for support of survivors are the right arrangements, and that they take full account of the impact of abuse on survivors. We take that hugely seriously. Those are never going to be easy issues to get complete consensus of opinion around, but we will strive each and every day to do our best to achieve that. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's position is on reports that there were 729 teacher vacancies the week before the start of the 2016-17 school term. There weren't. The figure of 729 teachers vacancies is wrong. To get that figure, Mr Scott included 200 vacancies in Argyll and Bute. As of 9 August, the dates of the Lib Dem FOI were 200 vacancies in Argyll and Bute. There were 12 vacancies in Argyll and Bute. I also understand that yesterday the Lib Dem convener of education in Argyll and Bute informed Tavish Scott of that, so hopefully he will take the opportunity today to correct the record. What's more in the time since the Lib Dem FOI many of the vacancies that did exist will have been filled. All of that said, we all want schools to have the right number of teachers and every child has the opportunity to fulfil their potential, and that's exactly what we continue to work to achieve. Tavish Scott. I understand that those figures are, of course, correct, but I don't think that it's a fear to blame an FOI junior officer in Argyll and Bute council, which is the implication of the line that the First Minister has just taken. It is also the case with the First Minister to accept that there are 500 teaching vacancies at the start of the school term. Would the First Minister accept that education is, of course, for concern? Does she recognise that, yesterday, the architect of curriculum for excellence, the way in which we teach our children in schools, said that the system is bedeviled by red tape, which Keir Bloomer described as self-evident lunacy? In those circumstances, wouldn't the First Minister instead look forward to the general teaching council or the Government actually investigating the reasons behind the number of teacher vacancies? First Minister. Anybody, other than perhaps Tavish Scott, I simply made the point that the figure that he had used previously was wrong and that he knew it was wrong and I thought perhaps, given that he just repeated it in Parliament, he might have wanted to take the opportunity to acknowledge that it was wrong. The other point about vacancies is that before the start of school terms, there will be vacancies. Those vacancies will reduce as we go into the school term. The figure of around 500 that he's now quoted will already have reduced and, of course, we continue to work with local authorities to ensure that we keep teacher vacancies to an absolute minimum and that we have the right numbers of teachers in our schools. With respect to the comments by Keir Bloomer, with the greatest respect, I would say that that's exactly why John Swinney has been working as hard as he has been working in recent weeks, to reduce the bureaucracy that teachers face, to reduce their unnecessary workload and, of course, to commence the governance review that takes a long hard look at exactly how our schools are governed. The Government is getting on with the reforms that we need to see in our schools and I would hope that we have the support of people right across the chamber as we do so. Liz Smith. Would the First Minister be able to tell us when the GTCS reforms that will allow those who have qualified teachers in other countries will be able to teach in Scotland? First Minister. I'm happy to provide the precise information to the member about what we are absolutely determined to do and part of the work that we're taking forward is to make sure that the arrangements that we have in place through the General Teaching Council support our objective of getting the brightest and best people into teaching in Scotland. We're absolutely committed to doing that and in terms of the detail of the question, I don't have that to hand but I'll make sure that it's provided very soon after today's session to the member. Jenny Marra. Dundee suffered chronic teacher shortages last year. This year, vacancies are in primary schools exclusively in the most deprived areas of our city. Council officials tell me that there is a significant under recruitment to teacher training. Why is this, First Minister, when it has such an impact on children and their education? First Minister. We've continued to work to expand teacher training. We, of course, have provided funding to local authorities to maintain the number of teachers in our schools and we'll continue to work hard to make sure that we're getting the right numbers of teachers into our schools. There's a range of initiatives that have been taken forward to address particular shortages in particular areas. In the north-east of Scotland, for example, we were speaking earlier about the difficulties in the oil and gas sector. One of the initiatives that's been taken forward in the north-east is to help train former oil and gas workers in teaching to get them into our schools. So there's a whole range of initiatives underway to make sure that we have the right numbers of teachers in our schools. I've said repeatedly in this chamber that the best education system in the world for all of our young people, whatever their background, is the top priority of this Government. Can I thank members? That concludes First Minister's questions. We now move to members' business. We'll take a few moments to change seats.