 The next item of business is portfolio question time and constitution, external affairs and culture. At question number one, I call Annabelle Ewing. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with Historic Environment Scotland about the reopening of assets in the Caledon Beath constituency. Minister Neil Gray. I have regular discussions with Historic Environment Scotland about the health and safety challenges of Scotland's properties in care. As regards to the Caledon Beath constituency, I understand that the main castle area of Aberdour Castle remain fenced until a tactile inspection has been completed. However, Historic Environment Scotland is aiming to have some areas of the site reopened to the public as soon as possible. Historic Environment Scotland would be more than happy to offer Annabelle Ewing a site visit to learn first hand from the experts about the situation there. Annabelle Ewing. I thank the minister for his helpful answer. In fact, it is not just parts of Aberdour Castle that are close to the public and have been so since the outset of the pandemic, but also Ingecom Abbey and St Bridges Kirk in Duggetty Bay. Obviously, that is impacting negatively on the local economy. While I would take up an opportunity to meet with Historic Environment Scotland, I would ask the minister to use his good offices to ensure that all three sites are opened as soon as possible and to provide a bit of clarity perhaps as to what as soon as possible might mean. Minister. I thank Annabelle Ewing for her question and for the way that she is advocating quite rightly and I would expect nothing less from her on behalf of her constituents and her constituency. I recognise the impact of access restrictions at historic sites on local businesses and communities as Annabelle Ewing has rightly outlined. I share absolutely the frustrations of members and our constituents regarding continued closures. As I am sure we all accept, the safety of visitors and his staff must take priority. I will pass the member's specific concerns to Historic Environment Scotland, including about community engagement. His is working hard to prioritise the most effective sites in the inspection schedule and to keep public access open where it is safe to do so. I am pleased to see that some sites have now partially opened such as Dooncastle this week, but I recognise that there is further to go in the member's constituency. I thank Annabelle Ewing again for her point. I thank the Scottish Government for providing an update on the work of its overseas officers. Scotland's international network creates domestic opportunities, attracts investment and ultimately benefits the people of Scotland. I am pleased to see the cross-party enthusiasm on the excellent job that Scotland's international officers do on a day-to-day basis within the Constitution, Europe and External Affairs and Culture Committee's recent report on the Scottish Government's international work. Building on my response to the committee's report on 6 June, I will be following up with the committee in the coming weeks in greater detail on the work that our international officers are currently doing and what they will be focused on in the months ahead. I recognise that the Scottish Government's overseas officers perform a function in seeking to promote Scottish businesses and culture abroad. The fact is that the SNP Government appeared to be misusing that resource in order to pursue a distinct foreign policy from the rest of the UK and to discuss independence with foreign governments all at taxpayer's expense. Can the minister confirm whether he has met foreign governments to discuss independence and, if so, on how many occasions? First, I think that he would benefit from visiting some of the officers. I do not know if he has been to any or if he has spoken to any of the staff in the offices, if he has satisfied himself about what they have been doing. They are highly professional representatives of Scotland. They benefit the economy of Scotland. They benefit in terms of inward investment. They promote the culture of Scotland. They promote Scotland's relations with the rest of the world. I think that they do a tremendous job. If I, as Cabinet Secretary or other ministers of the Scottish Government, hold conversations with others, of course we discuss the policy of the Government. That is what we have been elected to do, but please do not seek to undermine the professionalism and the effectiveness of Scottish Government offices around the world. It really is not worthy. Paul MacLennan. Thank you, Presiding Officer. The latest MSN Young Scotland Attractiveness Survey showed Scotland leading the way in the UK when it comes to securing foreign direct investment in spite of the significant challenges posed by Brexit and the pandemic. Given the findings of the report, can the cabinet secretary provide any further information about the work that the officers are on their taking to attract investment to Scotland? I thank my colleague for the sensible question. The EY results are fantastic for Scotland and they underline the strength of our inward investment offer with the growth in Scotland's FDI performance outpacing Europe and the rest of the UK. Scotland has maintained its position as the UK's most attractive FDI location outside London for nine of the last 11 years and for the seventh year running. The Scottish Government and its delivery partners, SDI and SE, will continue to focus support on attracting the high-quality inward investment that is required to deliver our ambitions in areas such as energy transition, focusing on Scotland's wind and hydrogen space, decarbonisation of transport and Scotland's international network is vital in supporting this work. The Scottish Government will continue to promote and showcase our world-leading capabilities on the international stage at events such as Dubai Expo, COP26 and the World Forum for FDI. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on Scotland's census 2022. Following the end of the census collect period, national records of Scotland are now focused on planned post-collection quality control and assurance work, which includes the census coverage survey, the second largest social research exercise in Scotland after the census itself. NRS is confident that the national return rate and coverage across the country, coupled with the aforementioned post-collection quality control and assurance work, will provide a credible high-quality census output. NRS is working with a number of statisticians and global experts in census and administrative data to help to steer the statistical and methodological work of NRS over the next few months. Russell Finlay. I want to begin by sincerely thanking the cabinet secretary, who is a very important MSP indeed for providing a humble member like myself with that answer, so thank you. Trains, ferries, rangers' prosecutions, trams, prespic, bi-fab, NHS disasters, policing scandals and now the SNP's shambolic census. Hard-working Scots always end up footing the bill for the SNP's world-beating incompetence. Can the cabinet secretary tell them whether he or anyone else will pay the price for this £30 million census debacle? Forgive me. I'm not sure what number the member was talking to there in the speech, but the increase in census costs to raise the return rate from the 70s to 88 per cent constituted 4 per cent of the budget for this census round. Frankly, that is, relatively speaking, an affordable and reasonable rate of return to raise the census return rate to provide a solid foundation, which is what the experts have described it as. Given that all public services rely on a census and a return rate that provides such a solid foundation, we should all take the opportunity to thank the 2.3 million households that took part in the census and the great many people who worked, including the hundreds over 1,000 people who worked as enumerators, particularly in the past month to ensure that we have secured the solid foundation, which independent international experts have described it as being. Will some of the rhetoric in this chamber draw attention away from the fact that it is, as you mentioned, important to acknowledge that 2.3 million households did return the census, an enormous proportion of the population, and the data collected in this immense exercise will deliver very real and tangible advances in the delivery of local public services. Can the cabinet secretary put on record some examples of how census data directly translates into inclusive service planning for Scotland's communities? It remains the best way to gather vital information on which Government councils the NHS and a range of users in the public, private and third sectors need. The results help local authorities, businesses and Government plan a wide range of vital public services to improve the lives of those living and working in Scotland. The information that has been collected from the census helps us to understand who stays in Scotland, who they stay with, what sort of accommodation they stay in. This allows decisions to be made about where money is spent in local communities on things like schools where our children are educated, roads that we drive on every day and healthcare that we rely on. The census is a very important piece of work, and I'm delighted that it has reached the return rate that it has given the challenges through the census collect period. 4. Willie Rennie To ask the Scottish Government what its policy is for the currency of an independent Scotland. Scotland will continue to use the pound sterling at the point of independence, establishing an independent Scottish currency as soon as is practically possible through the most careful, managed and responsible transition when an independent Scottish parliament chooses to do so. Willie Rennie I'm honoured that the minister has felt able to answer my question. In 2014 the policy of the SNP was a monetary union. Now Ian Blackford wants sterlingisation. The SNP conference rejected the leadership position describing it as a dangerous experiment. Coalition partner Lorna Slater said that it would be catastrophic. Patrick Harvie said that it would prevent Scotland from joining the EU. Alex Salmond wants a Scottish pound, Alan Smith wants the euro. The independence movement is like two ball bankers fighting over a 50-pence piece. If they can't agree on the currency, why on earth should the public? There's literally no answer that I could give to Willie Rennie that would satisfy him. We are on different sides of the independence debate. If we can't agree on that, at least it would be nice for us to be able to agree as Democrats that this is an issue that the people should be able to decide on. Question 5, Bill Kidd. To ask the Scottish Government what its position is regarding the potential impact on Scotland on the upcoming first meeting of states parties to the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Vienna. The Scottish Government is on record supporting the principles of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and of welcomed countries, including Ireland, ratifying the treaty. However, Scotland will not be able to share our views and support like-minded partners at this first meeting of the state parties to the treaty in Vienna later this month, which is due to be opened by the UN Secretary General. Scotland is not a sovereign independent country yet. UK opposition to the treaty means that they have chosen not to attend as observers only with independence can Scotland's interests be properly represented on the international stage. Bill Kidd. I thank the cabinet secretary for his answer. Now, it's long established that an independent Scotland will be free of nuclear weapons on the basis that these indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction and mass murder are morally important and should no circumstances be used. Despite the treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons making the use and stockpiling of those weapons illegal, as mentioned by the cabinet secretary, the UK Government is not engaging in this first meeting of states parties in Vienna at the UN next week. I'll be attending as part of UK ICANN's parliamentarians for the TPNW delegation, ensuring that a Scottish voice is heard and positioned on this consequential matter and can be heard. Can the minister, cabinet secretary, advise in the case of an independent Scotland how quickly this country will join the TPNW? Cabinet secretary. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I share my colleagues' disappointment that the UK Government is not engaging with this important process. I understand that a number of countries that are not parties to the treaty, including NATO member states, will be attending as observers. I welcome this commitment to multilateralism and a willingness to engage on these crucial issues. I'm also glad to hear that the member will join a delegation of parliamentarians in Vienna. As the First Minister and I have said this week, the Scottish Government will be publishing further papers setting out the prospectus for independence, and that will include our position on treaties. Question 6. Christine Grahame. Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. To ask the Scottish Government what contribution local culture evidenced in museums such as the Tramontium Museum in Melrose and the National Mining Museum Scotland in Newton Grades, makes to the local and wider Scottish economy. Minister Neil Gray. Thank you, Presiding Officer. The Tramontium Museum and National Mining Museum are fine examples of how this cultural sector can contribute to both the local and the wider economy. I recently attended the official opening of the Refurbish Tramontium Museum and viewed their fine collection of items from the Roman and Iron Age and was able to thank the trustees for their incredible work at the museum. I look forward to visiting the National Mining Museum, which is home to around 95,000 items of national significance, attracting 48,000 visitors each year and generating 1.3 million to the local economy. The Scottish Government continues to provide core funding to museums and galleries Scotland, which supports 430 museums and galleries across Scotland. Christine Grahame. I thank the minister for his reply. Minister, very small communities such as in Tweedsmure, high in the border sills can make a huge difference to the regeneration of their communities. Is the minister aware of the regeneration of the crook inn, closed in 2006 after more than 400 years of continuous operation, which is being done in phases? The first being the wee crook, a licensed bistro, which will certainly boost that local economy. Will he accept an invitation from me to see the project for himself? Not necessarily to go to the licensed bit, but just to visit the project. Minister. I've never spared the fun with Christine Grahame. I think it was a previous question that I actually took the invitation from Christine to go to Trimontheum, and I was very grateful to accept her hospitality and to be able to go along to the reopening with her on that special occasion. I agree that historic properties such as the crook inn in Tweedsmure are really important to local heritage and a community sense of place. If Christine Grahame would like to write to me with the further details, I'd be more than happy to consider that very generous invitation that she's made. I look forward to learning more about the restoration of this historic building and the tremendous work undertaken by local community. Sharon Dowie. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Christine Grahame makes a good point, but all too often culture spending is the first thing that gets cut by councils when funds are tight. For example, in Midlodau, in Christine Grahame's own area, the SNP Council have museum and galleries funding from 83,000 a year in 2016-17 to 10,000 in 2020-21. It's the same story in other SNP councils such as East Ayrshire or Glasgow. How does the minister expect our culture sector to grow locally when SNP councils are slashing culture spending across Scotland? With reference to the Trimontheum Museum in Melrose and the National Mining Museum in Newton Grange, I have regular conversations with local authority culture conveners. I'm hoping to be able to see them again once they're reappointed in order that I can make sure that we have a partnership approach to ensuring that our culture offering is strong and ensure that we are able to work together to ensure that our shared priorities around ensuring that people are able to enjoy our cultural facilities for both the community and the economic wellbeing, but also our own personal wellbeing as we recover from the pandemic. To ask the Scottish Government what priority it attaches to developing relationships with other European countries. I thank Liam McArthur for the question. The Scottish Government attaches a high priority to developing relationships with other European countries, which is why we want to rejoin the European Union. That is only possible by Scotland becoming an independent country. Our recently published Global Affairs Framework sets out the values and principles underpinning the Scottish Government's international work and the basis on which the Scottish Government will prioritise its European and wider international activity. Scottish Government will continue to take a positive and proactive role in engaging with European partners on shared challenges and opportunities, where Scotland is well placed to offer expertise and share best practice. I thank the cabinet secretary. The Erasmus programme is a fantastic initiative, which allowed us to forge relationships with our European friends and open the world for Scottish universities and Scottish students. It was a needless casualty of Brexit. However, the Welsh Government has already committed £65 million to their scheme with young people from Wales preparing to go abroad from September. Assuming that he believes that I have a sufficient electoral mandate, can I ask the cabinet secretary to confirm if the Scottish scheme will be up and running for the next academic year, or will thousands of young Scots continue to miss out on the opportunities of a lifetime? I thank Liam McArthur for that follow-up. As I have indicated in answers to his colleague from North East Fife, the loss of the Erasmus programme is indeed a tragedy. Its replacement is something that has been a matter of discussion between the Scottish Government and the commission, and we will continue to make progress in that, because I hope that we are all agreed that we need to do everything that we can do to ensure that young people from Scotland and other young people from the European continent are able to continue in the educational exchange that existed while we were part of the European Union. Perhaps it might give him cause to consider that the best future for Scotland is to re-establish all of the established programmes with the European Union. The only way of doing that is by rejoining the European Union. I would be delighted to welcome him as part of that campaign. Thank you, Presiding Officer. One of the best ways to develop relationship with their European countries is through educational ties. When my colleagues have recently asked the Scottish Government about delays to replacement for Erasmus, we have been told that the plan for Scotland to instead rejoin the EU. But while the Scottish Government waits for this theoretical solution, thousands of very real students are missing out on educational opportunities in Europe. They are limiting the opportunities of a generation in their gumball on a future EU membership that they cannot guarantee. Why can the Scottish Government not follow the example of the Welsh Labour Government and bring forward a replacement for Erasmus now? Cabinet Secretary. I think that it was only this week that we had confirmation from the British Labour Party that they were not going to seek the membership of the European Union for the United Kingdom. I think that that disappoints a great many and perhaps even some on Faisal Troudry's own benches, perhaps even himself. I already gave an answer to his Liberal Democrat colleague behind in relation to the Erasmus scheme in particular. He talks about Scotland rejoining the European Union and theoretical opportunities. This is not a theoretical opportunity. If one is a member state of the European Union, one can, with great ease, play a full part in the Erasmus programme. Perhaps he is one of those on the Labour benches that actually represents the 30 per cent of Labour voters that are in favour of Scottish independence and he can join us in the campaign when the referendum is under way. Question 8, Alex Cole-Hamilton. To ask the Scottish Government whether it has now published all of the legal advice that it has received in relation to a second independence referendum. Thank you, Presiding Officer. We have released the legal advice required under commissioner's decision as it does not merit the time and expense required for an appeal. Although we disagree with the decision, we have published precisely what the commissioner specified and in line with the ministerial code. I do not intend to comment on the content of other legal advice. Alex Cole-Hamilton. I am grateful for that reply. The information commissioner's ruling about this could not have been clearer. In it, he states that a second independence referendum in Scotland is of significant public interest for a substantial portion of the Scottish population. He goes on that the request to release it should be considered one of the exceptional circumstances that outweith the inbuilt public interest in maintaining the exemption on confidentiality. Presiding Officer, he was not talking about the legal advice as to whether the Government could road test a question with the Electoral Commission. He was talking about the central legality around the propositions open to the Scottish Government in pursuing its objective of holding an independence referendum next year. Does the Cabinet Secretary realise that, by withholding that central legality and that legal advice, he is holding not only the information commissioner in contempt but in this Parliament in contempt as well? Thank you, Presiding Officers. I have already made clear that, in line with the ministerial code, I do not intend to comment on the content of other legal advice. This is a position incidentally that has been held by Liberal Democrat ministers in this Parliament and by Liberal Democrat ministers at Westminster. I have no plans to depart from that position today.