 The next item of business is consideration of business motion 11883, in the name of George Adam, on behalf of the parliamentary bureau on changes to this week's business. Any member who wishes to speak against the motion should press their request-to-speak button now, and I call on George Adam to move the motion. Thank you, Presiding Officer, and moved. Thank you, Minister. No member has asked to speak against the motion. Therefore, the question is that motion 11883 be agreed. Are we all agreed? The motion is therefore agreed. The next item of business is topical questions, and at question number one I call Stephen Kerr. Thank you, Presiding Officer. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an assessment of the state of readiness of Scotland's front-line services in response to the yellow warnings in place for freezing temperatures over the next 10 days. Presiding Officer, the preparation for and response to severe weather in Scotland involves a wide range of partners, including emergency services, health boards, local authorities and utility companies, who have a responsibility to plan and prepare for the winter season. In recent months, partners' plans have been thoroughly tested by both exercises and a number of storms. I would like to record my thanks here in Parliament for the work that responders do during these testing times. The Scottish Government and Transport Scotland play our part also through winter. We have convened winter resilience meetings, bringing together partners to review our collective readiness for winter. We also engage with partners directly and through the resilience partnership structures, supporting work to refresh and rehearse adverse weather protocols. Under the current severe weather, officials held a meeting of the Scottish Government resilience room this morning. At this time, no significant concerns have been raised. Stephen Kerr. I am grateful to the cabinet secretary for her answer. In the teeth of freezing weather, we see more people become more reliant on local government services, which the Accounts Commission has told us has had a £725 million shortfall in funding. Gritting, snow clearing and looking after the most vulnerable residents are all at risk because of the Scottish Government's relentless budget cuts. Has the minister made any assessment of how budget cuts have impacted on Scotland's overall resilience? Does the minister think that the response by front-line services to bad weather will be made better or worse by those cuts? Local government and other partners provide vital services, particularly during the winter months. However, I would have hoped, as demonstrated by the publication of our draft budget, that the Government continues to prioritise public services, despite more than a decade of austerity from the UK Government and the autumn budget statement that was certainly the worst-case scenario for public services. Nonetheless, Mr Kerr raises a really important point in particular if I take his example with respect to gritting. I would like to reassure him that stocks of strategic salt are available to support national resilience. Transport Scotland leads the Scottish salt group. It may be interesting to know that there is a stockpile of rock salt in Dundee Recife, leaf dots of 110,000 tonnes. In terms of those stockpiles, resources held by local authorities have nearly 500,000 tonnes of salt at their disposal. We are in a good state of preparedness for winter. The news about the stockpiling of grit salt that the cabinet secretary refers to refers to, but I do not think that COSLA, the chief executives and indeed the leaders of Scotland's 32 local authorities, would agree with her assessment of the recent budget proposals. I would like to return to the issue of vulnerable people, because in this respect the Scottish Government itself is very much on the front line. I would like to refer specifically to cold weather payments, because a pensioner living in Penrith would have been eligible for £75 so far this year, with more money to come if the weather continues to be as cold as it is. Whereas a pensioner in my constituency in Pullmont will only receive £55 in total. Why does the cabinet secretary think that we do not need higher cold weather payments here in Scotland than in England? Will the cabinet secretary urgently review the absurd policy of not paying out cold weather payments based on temperature? I should remind members that my portfolio responsibilities are with respect to resilience. That is the preparedness prior to extreme events and the Government's response on how we worked with our partners during events. In terms of his point with respect to fuel poverty and cold weather payments, that would be for the social security secretary. I will ensure that she responds to Mr Kerr, of course. However, I remind him that this Government continues to do everything that we can within our powers to address those important points that he makes with respect to fuel poverty. It is a shame that his colleagues and the Government's south of the border did not do likewise. In terms of his point about front-line services, I would also point to the fact that the Scottish Government works closely with COSLA and, indeed, we jointly produced the winter plan to help address where there are concerns for vulnerable adults. We have much interest in the subject and concise questions and responses will enable me to get more members in. I call David Torrance. For the benefit of those watching at home, can the cabinet secretary outline where members of the public are able to assess guidance to support households prepared for some of the challenges that winter weather can pose? The Scottish Government and our partners will take extensive efforts to ensure that good information is publicly available. I would point the member to the Ready Scotland website and to social media channels such as that that is produced by Transport Scotland and Police Scotland, where they will receive regular updates. The point that the member makes is imperative that we all ensure that, as individuals and as households, we do everything that we can to ensure that we are prepared for the weather that comes our way. I am sorry that I am not able to join you today, but travel disruption to both plains and the poor roads to Sombra have prevented me from getting any further than from home. We know that icy roads pose a danger. I hear of people who have had slips on icy roads, pavements and that lower priority streets do not get gritted. With the expectation that climate change will leave us with more extreme weather, will the Scottish Government consider a review on the impact on local authorities and of the gritting strategy to avoid increased costs and visits to the NHS? I firmly believe that the review of gritting strategies at a local level is far better placed at a local level rather than done from St Andrew's house. The member makes a good point about the importance of climate change. To protect lives and livelihoods, the Scottish National Adaption Plan is the policy programme that will give us the tools that we need to prepare for and adapt to the growing impacts of climate change. Edward Mountain. Sorry, Presiding Officer, I did not hear you. I thank the Cabinet Secretary for Answer so far. In 2002, 210 babies were born to Kate and S. Mums. 202 of them were born in Inverness, many being induced or by elective caesarean. That is because mothers do not trust the A9 to be open. It is the only route, so what contingency plans have been put in place should the A9 close yet again north of Inverness to ensure that the people of Kate and S have proper medical care? While it is outwith my powers to always accurately predict the weather, the member raises a good point with respect to the importance of the A9 in terms of transporting people to vital crucial services. I assure him that Transport Scotland, in terms of its multi-agency response team, was stood up this morning at 6 o'clock. That will continue throughout the duration of today. It is a multi-agency response that works particularly closely with Police Scotland to monitor and respond to any system and to, as far as we can possible, avert difficulties by providing good information and doing everything that we can safely to keep our roads open. However, as this morning, all our major trunk roads remain open. 2. Mark Griffin I draw members' attention to my legislative interest, which shows that I was previously the owner of a private entity property in the North Lancer Council area. Can I ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to bring more homes back into use in light of reports that the stock of empty homes is valued at an estimated £3.4 billion? We are strongly committed to returning empty homes into use and are already acting to support owners to do so. Since 2010, our £3.2 million investment into Scottish Empty Homes Partnership has helped to bring over 9,000 homes back into use. The approach is anchored on building capacity to work with owners in each local authority area. That is why we have interest from Wales in emulating a lead following the modest impact of a grant-led scheme in Wales. Mr Griffin is aware, because I wrote to Parliament last year to confirm the publication of an independent audit and set out further actions to enhance the approach to empty homes to reflect the wide range and complexity of circumstances that have to be addressed. Mark Griffin I thank the minister for that answer, but the number of empty homes is now at the second highest on record, jumping 3,500 in the last year. The numbers are going in the wrong direction. In October, the Government published a consultation finding that back Labour's proposal for an empty homes council tax escalator, which would increase the charges on those empty homes for every year that they are empty, potentially rarising £30 million for councils. Can I ask the minister when the Government planned to layer regulations so that councils could increase those charges on the most problematic empty homes in the farse of billions of pounds of homes lying empty while kids are stuck in temporary accommodation? Mark Griffin I thank the minister for that answer. The reason behind empty homes is that it is complex to be owners that are died and that there is no intention to renovate hospital or care home moves and so on and owners overseas. The 100 per cent premium that has been introduced by the Government prior to that, the position that has been inherited from the previous Labour Government, local authorities, could increase that between 50% and 10%. As he said, it was consulted on last summer, which would enable the premium to be increased, but that requires primary legislation. The consultation analysis has been considered through the joint working group on sources of local government funding in council tax reform. Once it does its work, the Government will proceed with that work. Mark Griffin I thank the minister for that answer again. Councils in England seem to be ahead of where we are in Scotland with the powers that they have, Salford, Cumbria and Balsover. They are all using enforced sale powers that we do not have here just now to get indebted empty properties onto the market and sold. The adjudication powers that we have here are cake, complex and very rarely used. Does the minister not see that empty homes with inconsiderate owners should be forced onto the market? Will he declare a housing emergency and agree to work with Labour members so that enforced sale and rental powers can be included in the housing bill to get empty homes back into use by families who are desperate for them? Thank you. As Mr Griffin knows, we meet on a regular basis to discuss this and other issues. At the moment, local authorities across Scotland already have broad powers to compulsory acquire vacant and dead-like properties. Those powers are well utilised in some areas, unless to another. When I meet local authorities, the issue of empty homes always comes up and how we can work with them specifically. For example, there was a discussion with the Edinburgh council around about their empty homes partnership. The issue they had was trying to get workmen to try and work with voids and empty homes to try and bring that forward. That was Brexit-induced because there are not enough workers to go round. We are working very closely with Edinburgh on that. For the members who are shouting across the chamber, the issue was directly from Edinburgh council. It is a feedback from Edinburgh council to take that up with Edinburgh council. On the issue of compulsory purchase legislation, we are obviously working with an export advisory group this year. We have committed in parallel to consider the justification for power to compel the sale of empty properties. We will discuss that later on with Mark Griffin later on this year. Jackie Dunbar I refer members to my register of interest as I was a local councillor for Aberdeen City Council at the start of this session. Throughout the course of the pandemic, the number of empty council properties in Aberdeen grew significantly, and efforts to bring those back into use have been hindered by labour shortages and supply chain issues. What support is available to local authorities to help to bring back empty council housing back into use? The Scottish Empty Homes Partnership launched an Empty Homes framework tool kit last year, which was co-produced with local authorities. The tool kit aims to support local authorities to develop a more strategic approach and ensure that resources are deployed for maximum impact. In the area in Aberdeen, the council has also been awarded £6.15 million through the ULTRF to bring 500 empty social rented homes back into use, with work already complete on 400 of those. That provides a much-needed boost to social rented housing supply, and the city of Atoms has been retained long-term to help to meet demand from people in other forms of housing need when no longer required from those displaced from Ukraine. Miles Briggs Thank you, Presiding Officer. The percentage of empty properties in rural and remote areas is higher than the Scottish average in a written response to me just before Christmas. The minister outlined that the Scottish Government's £25 million rural affordable homes funding had generated zero homes. What work is he doing to bring that money together to target and audit empty homes, especially those in the social rented sector? I think that there are a number of points that I wanted to raise in terms of that. Obviously, the rural housing plan was published last year, and we are working on that with local authorities, key local authorities. In that regard, there are active discussions going on with local authorities on the moment on the rural housing funding. Just in December, Richard Lochhead and I met a number of stakeholders in the sector about the empty homes issue, particularly around some workplaces that have issues about that also. There are a number of discussions that are going on, and there are active discussions with some local authorities already going on. I am happy to pick that up with them after the question. I draw members to my register of interests with respect to ownership of rental properties. Can I ask what work the Scottish Government has done to evaluate the impact that further increases in council tax for empty homes could have on bringing them back into productive use? Is there any reason why the power to set council tax levels for those properties is not completely devolved to local authorities to enable them to set surcharges at a level that suits local circumstances? I thank the member for his question. To your first question, we have introduced legislation to ensure that new owners of properties that have previously been emptied are protected from the empty homes premium for at least six months. That is aimed at encouraging the reoccupation of empty properties. We also consulted on increasing the council tax premium beyond 100 per cent. Changing local authority discretion to an increase empty home property charges beyond 100 per cent, as I said before, requires primary legislation. We will reflect on a recent analysis in the consultation of the council tax treatment of second and long-term empty homes in partnership with COSLA as part of the joint working group on council tax reform.