 Good morning. The first item of business today is General Questions. Our first question from Suniversal Robinson.Bu cres launching programme to answer questions to ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding the impact of universal credit on food banks in Scotland in the light of the Trucel trust before reporting an increase in its distribution of emergency supplies. Suniversal credit takes the pockets of the money out of the mouse of some of the gyda'r perthegoswyd yn unig i'w rhan o'r unig, a gyd-Dawg' oedd yn amlwgol yng Nghaerffordd Ysgolwyr Sala Joerf yn Fyrgyddiaethau cerdiffau gwael yn cael y maes gan 2.0 i fynd yng nghymru, a ffordd gyda ddechrau i gael i gael i ddim yn rhoi'r gweithiau'r Gwyrddiaethau UK. Yr Truswell Trust rydw i ddim yn ogyrch yn ard говорить llei, pan dweud i ddymarfodau i credentials digon o'r Pherwydd Creadiffau Gwyrddiaethsaeth. has written to the new secretary of state for working pensions to repeat our calls for the roll-out of universal credit to be halted as a matter of urgency. Shona Robison I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. Would the cabinet secretary join me in commending the invaluable work of food banks in Dundee, which has been stretched to capacity with the increasing impact of what the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty has now called universal discredit, which has seen a 34 per cent increase in food bank usage and a staggering increase of renter years by 54 per cent across Dundee since last year? Will the cabinet secretary agree that the chancellor's claim that we have reached the end of austerity is simply not credible given those figures and the recent scathing UN report that utterly condemns those failures? Shona Robison I commend the hard work that goes on in our communities that are supporting each other through exceptionally difficult times and in times of crisis, but it is shameful that the UK Government continues to look the other way, despite the mounting evidence and even an intervention from the UN. I highlighted the impact of universal credit and food banks in my original answer, and causal evidence shows that average arrears for those in universal credit are two and a half times the average arrears on those that are housing benefit. The evidence is clear and the evidence is simple that universal credit is causing stress, anxiety, increased renter years and increased debt across Scotland. That is why it must be stopped and stopped now. David Torrance To ask the Scottish Government how accessible universal credit is for people with profound and multiple learning disabilities. Shona Robison Universal credit's digital by default approach makes it inaccessible for many people, and of course that might be a particular issue for those with profound learning disabilities and their families and carers. The result of the DWP's own survey shows that only 54 per cent of claimants can make a digital claim unassisted. It is yet another example of universal credit failing the people who need it most and putting people at risk of not being able to access the financial support that they are entitled to. It is therefore vital that this and the many other issues with universal credit are addressed before millions of people are migrated over to universal credit beginning next year. David Torrance I thank the cabinet secretary for her answer. Cabinet secretary, Adam is 18. Blind has no mobility, no means of communication, no capacity to make a decision, is fed by means of a G-tube and requires support to keep us at Airways Autumn. Yet he and his mother have had to endure an interview, complete a multitude of forms and even obtained a sick note from his GP. They have just learned that he may also have to attend an assessment to evaluate his work capability. Does the cabinet secretary agree that his inhumane system is causing untold distress and anguish to the most vulnerable within our society and should be haughtwood immediately by us uncaring Tory Government? The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, Sport and Sport I think that the member speaks very eloquently about universal credit and I am very sorry to hear about the situation that Adam finds himself in through absolutely no fault of his own. I am sure that members across the chamber will hear equally awful stories in their own surgery, as individuals are forced through. What is quite frankly an inhumane system, and Adam's example of Adam has brought that to the chamber once again today. As I said in my answer to Shona Robison, there is absolutely no doubt that universal credit is failing some of the most vulnerable people in our society. Adam included. That is why we have written to the various Home Secretary's for Work and Pensions that we have had over the past 18 months. I wrote again to Amber Rudd this week outlining the fundamental flaws of universal credit and, particularly, the digital by default example of that. That, for many other reasons, is why I have called once again on the Secretary of State to halt the roll-out of universal credit. Bill Kidd To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the findings of the UN's special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights following his two-week inquiry into rising levels of poverty and the consequences of austerity measures. The Scottish Government welcomed the UN's special rapporteur's visit to the UK. Professor Alston's end-of-visit statement is a devastating critique of the UK Government's punitive, mean-spirited and often callous policies and the suffering and hardship that it has caused. The Scottish Government echoes Professor Alston's call for the UK Government to stop denying the evidence. The hard reality is that one-fifth of the UK population lives in poverty. Last year, 1.5 million people were reduced to destitution, and that is an absolute scandal. Yet again, a UN expert has laid bare the UK Government's failures to guarantee the most basic of human rights food shelter dignity to millions of its own citizens. Bill Kidd I thank the minister for that reply. Does she agree that integrating human rights into and throughout Scottish Government policy—a direct direction that is the polar opposite of the Tory United Kingdom Government's take on politics—will build an increasingly equitable society? Fiona Hyslop It is at the heart of everything that we seek to do, as the Scottish Government, with all public authorities now having a duty to respect, protect and fulfil human rights. That is why our own new national performance framework now has an explicit human rights outcome supported by 31 human rights indicators. That is why we are taking practical action to implement Scotland's international human rights obligations. For example, Scotland's new social security system embeds human rights in its core legislative principles, and those principles go much further than just simply warn words. Every aspect of the new system is being developed in partnership with rights holders, and we are designing a public service that meets their needs from the outset. I glimpse of an approach that Scotland can take if given the power and responsibility to deliver it for the people of our country. They stand in complete contrast to the policies of the UK Government, which keeps its head buried in the sand about the everyday misery, hardship and despair that it continues to cause. Elaine Smith Is the cabinet secretary aware that the devastating impact of UK Government policies on women's lives has been given specific attention by the UN rapporteurs report with women selling sex in order to pay for food and shelter? Women is the vast majority of single parents facing significant hardship with the two-child cap, and women are making up the majority of pensioners, many of whom are living in poverty. In addition, Philip Alston specifically mentions the Scottish welfare fund and of the thousands of households in Scotland receiving help from it. 54 per cent were single people and 22 per cent were single parents, but none of the Scottish Government data tells us if those are men or women. Why is the data not disaggregated by sex disability arrays to allow for more informed analysis of the take-up and reach of the Scottish welfare fund to ensure that it is contributing effectively to tackling the poverty that is faced by a disproportionate number of women in Scotland? Elaine Smith Absolutely, and Elaine Smith is right to point out the gendered impact of UK welfare reforms and austerity, the devastating impact, the tragic heart-breaking impact that is causing to too many women across Scotland and the UK. Of course, we will seek to always do what we can around the Scottish welfare fund to ensure that it can meet the needs of the people of Scotland, the people who are designed to help in the face of the cuts that we are facing. We are spending £125 million this year to mitigate the UK cuts, and by 2020-21 £3.7 billion will be cut from the social security budget. That is really difficult to sustainably always mitigate, but where we can improve, and there are recommendations for us in the Scottish Government to make improvements to the way that we cope with the welfare reforms to ensure that we can better improve the system in Scotland, and we will continue to engage with Elaine Smith on those particular issues that she raised around the gendered impact on welfare and reforms and austerity. Gillian Martin Continuing on that theme, the UN special rapporteur said that limiting benefit payments to two children was as, I quote, forced and physical as China's one-child policy. What does the cabinet secretary make of his assertion that the UK welfare system is as sexist as if it were compiled by a roomful of misogynists? That is his words. How could she outline if all fell welfare were devolved to this place, what would the Scottish Government do differently as a priority? Elaine Smith We certainly would not have a rate clause, we certainly would not have a two-cap child limit and certainly what I said in the outline to Bill Kidd in my response to the social security system that we have built in Scotland that has been designed around dignity, respect and fairness gives a glimpse of what is possible when Scotland has the ability to cope and care for its people. That is one way that we are currently delivering for the people of Scotland and if we had the full powers and competencies to make sure that we could care for everybody in our country then we would deliver a system that did not have things like the inexcusable rate clause policy in this country. Finlay Carson To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for the creation of new national parks. Roseanna Cunningham There are no current plans to designate new national parks in Scotland. Finlay Carson Does the cabinet secretary agree that, in light of the widespread support revealed by the public engagement exercise carried out by the Galloway National Park Association, the time has come for the Scottish Government to consider initiating a formal consultation on a possible kingdom of Galloway national park? Roseanna Cunningham As the member knows, this is an on-going conversation that is being had not just with people from Galloway but from other parts of Scotland where there are competing interests in national parks. I know that the minister was scheduled to meet the chairs of SCNP and GNPA on Tuesday morning. That meeting had to be postponed but is now being rescheduled. I remind him of some of the comments that I have had to make in the past, which is that there are financial considerations in all of this. Those financial considerations not only have not gone away but, if anything, have become exacerbated. Emma Harper Last week, I wrote to the minister with regard to the establishment of considering a national park for Galloway. Given that the national parks in Scotland have served the country well by providing the respective areas with an increase in visitor numbers, a growth in employment, a boost to local and rural economy, as well as having a positive impact on wildlife conservation, can I ask the minister to commit to giving the prospect of a Galloway national park serious consideration? Roseanna Cunningham As I indicated, we are always happy to continue to engage on the Galloway national park association proposals. Indeed, as we are with other communities who are also thinking about national parks, the minister does not tend to meet them to discuss their ideas, but any proposal would need to be assessed in the context of the very real concerns around public finances and the costs that would be associated with new national parks. Colin Smyth Does the cabinet secretary not accept that the campaign for Galloway national park is in many ways a campaign about equality across rural Scotland? The benefits of national parks should not just be for central and north Scotland but all of Scotland, including the south, which is an area that sadly is all too often forgotten. Roseanna Cunningham I think that there is a strong economic case that is made for the national parks and the whole of the national park idea. I am not entirely sure that I would characterise either of the two national parks as somehow being central belt. I suppose that he means that the Loch Lomond and Trussles national park extends as far south as Baloch, but I am not entirely certain that people consider that to somehow be central belt. Both of them are very rural. Both of them are indeed helping the rural economy, but of course with the south of Scotland there are a lot of other things being discussed at the moment, and the Scottish Government is committed to setting up a development agency in the south of Scotland, which in itself is intended to deliver economic benefits to that area. Colin Beattie Question 5 Colin Beattie The Scottish Government put its responses to reports that the number of pupils learning a musical instrument fell by 1,000 between 2016-17 and 2017-18. Cabinet Secretary John Swinney The Scottish Government recognises the value of instrumental music education to the wellbeing and attainment of young people. Any reduction in take-up is therefore a cause for concern. We are working with key partners to find ways to ensure that instrumental music education remains accessible to all. Local authorities in Scotland are responsible for ensuring that all children and young people have access to the full curriculum, including the expressive arts. We are supporting local authorities by delivering a real-terms increase in revenue and capital funding in 2018-19. Colin Beattie The cabinet secretary may be aware that the two local authorities in my constituency, Midlothian Council and East Lothian Council, are named in the report as being areas in which hundreds of pupils are no longer registering for music lessons following the introduction of charges. Can he outline what support the Scottish Government can give local authorities and pupils to ensure that drop-in uptake is arrested? Colin Beattie By coincidence, I was in Musselborra grammar school yesterday and there was a fantastic orchestral performance by the school orchestra in advance of the meeting of the Scottish Education Council, but one of the senior pupils of the school made the point to me that the changes that were made by East Lothian Council were deterring individuals from taking up instrumental music education and she was concerned about that point, so Mr Beattie makes a fair point. There is a varied position about music education charging around the country. There are a number of local authorities in the country—Dundee, Edinburgh, the Western Isles, Glasgow, Orkney, Renfrewshire and West Dumbatonshire—who apply no charge whatsoever for instrumental music tuition but others who do apply charges. Individual local authorities need to take due account of the impact of those charges on the participation and involvement of young people, because all of us want to see young people able to take part in the expressive arts. A working group led by the chair of the music education partnership group, which brings together representation from the Government and COSLA, is actively considering ways to ensure that instrumental music tuition remains accessible. Clearly, music tuition is very important. It is important that everybody regardless of their background is able to access that. Does he accept that local authorities have had to cut their budgets by £1.5 billion since 2010, and as a result of that, we are seeing cuts at music, education and teachers are under more and more pressure as a result of those cuts? I do not think that it is nearly as straightforward as that. In Dundee, Edinburgh, the Western Isles, Glasgow, Orkney, Renfrewshire and West Dumbatonshire, the local authorities have decided that, within the current financial settlement, they can afford to pay for instrumental music tuition. They have made the choice to prioritise that. Other local authorities have not made that decision as part of that. Local authorities have to make those choices, but the answer to all does not all rest with the Scottish Government. It rests with local authorities to take their right decision to support instrumental music tuition. To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recent purple Tuesday, what action it is taking to support the improvement of retail experiences for disabled people. We support the principle of accessibility that purple Tuesday is promoting and believe that retailers should focus on accessibility and inclusion all year round. Effective solutions to the problems and barriers faced by disabled people must be drawn from their lived experience. That is why the Scottish Government funds volunteer-led access panels to work with planning authorities and businesses to improve access in local communities. I would strongly encourage retailers, councils and those promoting the economic development of local areas, to involve disabled people and their organisations to improve accessibility and inclusion for all of their customers. Liz Smith, I thank the minister for that response. I have met recently a number of stakeholders in this area, including Scottish Red Cross, Disability Equality Scotland and UNS guide, who are all raising the issue of some unmet availability of mobility aids. Can I ask the minister if the Scottish Government has any plans to introduce some additional measures to support those groups and to discuss the matter in detail with various retail groups? I know that Liz Smith has had an on-going focus on this issue, but she will understand that equality law recognises that bringing about equality for disabled people may mean changing the way in which services are delivered, providing extra equipment and or the removal of physical barriers. That is a duty to make reasonable adjustments and that duty aims to make sure that a disabled person can use a service as close as is reasonably possible to get to the standard that is usually offered to a non-disabled person. As I said in my earlier answer, the Scottish Government funds access panels, which are groups of volunteers who work together to improve physical access to the built environment and wider social inclusion. As far as UNS guide and other organisations that are involved in us, I would be quite happy to meet Liz Smith and those organisations in order to take forward some of the issues that they raise. 7. Gail Ross To ask the Scottish Government how many abattoirs there are. Cabinet Secretary, Fergus Ewing. 5. Approved red meat slaughterhouses. Three poultry in Scotland. There are also 16 approved establishments that handle wild game and two authorised on-farm slaughter facilities for farm game. Gail Ross I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. Many farmers and crofters in rural areas are faced with long journeys to get their animals slaughtered and butchered. 6. What support could be given for local solutions such as mobile abattoirs, co-operatives or farm butchery? Cabinet Secretary, as a proud advocate for and an enthusiastic consumer of high quality Scotch beef, lamb and pork, such adequate provision is plainly vital. I am aware of Gail Ross's strong interest in pursuing matters for her constituents. I am very happy to support any developments that are brought forward and work very closely with Gail Ross in her campaigning efforts.