 Rhawn metall. The first item of business is consideration of business motion 10743, in the name of Jofys Patrick, on behalf of the Bureau, setting out a revised business programme for tomorrow. I would ask any member who objects to say so now, and I call on Jofys Patrick to move motion 10743. F Classic and move. Thank you very much. No one has asked to speak against it there, so the question is that we agree motion 10743. Are we agreed? We are agreed. The next item of business is portfolio questions, and we start its culture tourism and external affairs, and we start with question number one from Graham Simpson. To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes tourism in the central Scotland region. Cabinet Secretary, Shona Hyslop. The Scottish Government fully recognises the importance of tourism to the economy of central Scotland, the numerous attractions of the area from the Kelpies at Falkirk, Coatbridge's Summerly Heritage Park to the UNESCO site at New Lanark are actively promoted by VisitScotland through a range of digital and traditional channels across domestic and international marketing campaigns. Other public bodies also play a key role in supporting tourism development in the area. For example, business and destination support from Scottish Enterprise, training and development through Skills Development Scotland, promotion and protection of cultural heritage and historic properties through Historic Environment Scotland and promotion and enhancement of the natural environment through Scottish Natural Heritage. Graham Simpson. Thanks for that answer. The heritage of North Lanarkshire is undersold in my view, it's rich in history but does not play to its strengths. Campaigners fighting to save Greenbelt next to the old Monkland canal at Calderbank believe that it could become a country park and celebrate the history of the area, including what could become a canal trail, a canal heritage trail. It could be a big tourist attraction. Would the minister agree with me that such a project is worth investigating and would she agree to see what can be done to progress such an idea? On that later point, I think a discussion by the campaigners with Scottish Canals would be a helpful first step. Certainly we've seen with the development, certainly with the Kelpies, but we've also seen the benefits of those attractions on the wider area. I think that looking at leisure recreation as an economic stimulus is really important, but when you can tell the stories and the very rich and deep heritage stories that we have in Lanarkshire and elsewhere, it's a good opportunity to do that forward. I am interested if the member could keep me in touch with what's happening and perhaps identify the appropriate organisations that can help those who are seeking to do that development. For question 2, Clare Adamson. Thank you, Presiding Officer. To ask the Scottish Government what progress there has been on Brexit negotiations following the recent joint ministerial committee meeting. The latest joint ministerial committee on EU negotiations took place on Thursday 22 February. I was very clear going into the meeting that I would continue to make the case for Scotland remaining in the single market and the customs union. Scotland's place in Europe, people, jobs and investment shows that remaining in the EU is the best outcome for Scotland. Short of this membership of the single market and customs union will best protect us from the worst economic damage. However, the UK Government is still insisting on a hard Brexit regardless of the cost to jobs and living standards and, as we've seen today, even regardless of the damage that it might do in Northern Ireland. In relation to our involvement in the process, the terms of reference to the JMC made clear that all four UK Governments should have oversight of the negotiations of the EU to ensure, as far as possible, that agreed outcomes are secured. However, that has not happened. With just months to go before a final withdrawal deal has to be agreed, there are unfortunately still outstanding issues from phase 1 of the talks. No agreement on transition and no clarity from the UK Government what it wants from a future relationship. On the withdrawal bill, I made it absolutely clear that what happens to devolved powers must be a matter for Holyrood. It is imperative that devolution settlement is protected and the powers of the Scottish Parliament cannot be changed unilaterally by the UK Government. Thank you. Does the minister share my concern over the irresponsible comments made by some prominent Brexit supporters recently regarding the Good Friday agreement? Does he agree that adjudges such as this have the potential for disastrous impact, as put by Ireland's deputy prime minister, when he said, potentially undermines the foundations of a fragile peace process in Northern Ireland that should never be taken for granted? I very much agree. I am very concerned and increasingly concerned by the language that is being used. As are many people in Ireland itself, I gave evidence to the joint committee of the Eurocorus three weeks ago in which I was asked specific questions about this. There is a very strong feeling in Ireland that the language being used and the attitudes being shown are very wrong indeed. I find it difficult to believe what I read last night regarding the views of the foreign secretary. If the foreign secretary of the United Kingdom seeks to abrogate an international treaty in order to pursue his very warped views of what the United Kingdom should do, he is unfit for that office. The prime minister should be firing him rather than allowing him to continue to influence matters. As far as we are concerned, the agreement that the United Kingdom and the EU were meant to have come to last year, in which there would be no border and unfettered free trade, is the agreement that should stick. If the UK is trying to run away from that, it should be held to it by every means possible. To ask the Scottish Government what support it is given to Dunfermline heritage and tourism partnership to help to develop the town into a major visitor destination. Dunfermline offers tourism a growing range of cultural and historical attractions within its heritage quarter. The Scottish Government, through our national tourism body, visits Scotland will continue to ensure that it fully maximises its potential. Visit Scotland already engages fully with the Dunfermline heritage quarter partnership, providing valuable input, helping to shape discussions and advising on successful funding bids. I also had the pleasure of announcing that the newest attraction within the quarter, the Dunfermline Carnegie Library and Galleries, was the winner of the Rias Andrew Dylun award for the best building in Scotland for 2017, anaclade that is richly deserved. I am grateful to the cabinet secretary for that answer. The Dunfermline heritage and tourism partnership are doing a great deal of work. They are ambitious for bringing people to experience the arts, the culture, the hospitality and the history of the former ancient capital of Scotland. The town was disappointed by the decision of visiting Scotland to close its tourist information centre. Dunfermline should have more support to fulfil its potential as a visitor destination. Will the cabinet secretary agree to meet representatives of the heritage and tourist partnership to discuss the future of Dunfermline as a major Scottish tourist attraction? Ministers do not directly promote the individual times within Scotland, but we work with VisitScotland. One member from VisitScotland and one from Historic Environment Scotland directly sits on the partnership to help to advise the best ways to promote Dunfermline as a tourist area. In relation to the VisitScotland office, the VisitScotland information partnership programme now has seven members in Dunfermline, including the Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum and another number of tourism attractions. They are working with the new library and galleries to make sure that they can also be a partner, to make sure that visitor information can be provided and they also hope to work with Abbott House, but with a 32 per cent decline in numbers and very few people taking bookings from the visitor centres. It is more about the information and accessibility. I am more than happy to find out more about the work of the Dunfermline heritage quarter partnership, but, unless there are any problems that are exciting, I think that the best way to do that is to make sure that the professionals with VisitScotland can provide the professional advice to make sure that Dunfermline is the tourist attraction that he and I want it to be. Alexander Stewart Thank you, Presiding Officer. With the recent success and redevelopment of the Carnegie library and galleries in Dunfermline, what plans does the Scottish Government have to highlight the award-winning building, and what it has done to help businesses and local communities in South Fife to realise the tourism potential of the Queensbury crossing? There is work on going to make sure that the tourism potential, working with the local councils in particular, they want to take their time as to how they might want to do that, but we certainly, through VisitScotland, are actively involved in that. In relation to the library and galleries, I have visited it myself. I have helped to promote it. I think that it is a great place. As Alex Rowley pointed out, there is unrealised potential there, so I think that we need all parties to work together to help to promote it, because it is not that far from the centres in terms of geography and transport links. Combining the accessibility and the profile of the Queensbury crossing along with Dunfermline, I think that there will be great opportunities for Dunfermline as a tourist attraction. Question 4, Kezia Dugdale. Thank you. To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of Scotland's potential as a destination for LGBT tourists. Scottish Government-funded research in 2014 found that the LGBTI visitors attach significant importance to the warm welcome that they can expect from a destination, how they will be treated in their accommodation and how safe they will be. Based on the research findings, the LGBTI component of VisitScotland's consumer website was redesigned in 2015. In addition, a number of initiatives are currently being developed by partners to further promote Scotland as a potential destination for LGBTI tourists. That includes a project led by Leap Sports, which aims to welcome LGBTI communities to the Glasgow 2018 European Championships. That has been supported by a funding contribution of £20,000 from the Scottish Government. Kezia Dugdale. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. She will also be aware that there are new pride festivals popping up all over Scotland at the moment, notably in Fife and in East Lothian. Those are great for visibility and empowerment, but they are also good for local economies. This Parliament is very proud of its record on LGBT rights, and we consider Scotland to be a great place to be gay. I encourage the cabinet secretary to reflect on whether we do enough to tell the world about that and ask her to instruct VisitScotland to assess what financial support it could provide to pride festivals as tourist attractions. I do not have to instruct VisitScotland, because it is already actively looking at producing materials that will help to promote that very welcome and the sentiments that she has described. In relation to funding, there was contact made by an individual who was representing the pride events. He has been responded to, but has yet taken up the offer to meet VisitScotland and Scottish Government officials to look at how we can take forward some of those initiatives to have better promotion. I look forward to his response. To ask the Scottish Government how it will support the Scottish tourism sector to help to tackle stigma and prejudice that can be faced amongst the LGBTI community. I think that the tourism industry must take every step to make sure that everybody feels welcome and to make sure that some of the historic stigma is addressed and to make sure in the here and now that people have felt that they were made to feel welcome. I was due to attend the Scottish Tourism Alliance conference tomorrow. I understand that that is no longer taking place, but in issues that can take place at conferences like that can help people to understand how they need to behave and what they need to do to make sure that everybody that visits VisitScotland for whatever they come from makes sure that they feel welcome. I wish all those delegates who are either staying in Glasgow or if they have already made their way home well. Obviously, that is a missed opportunity to take forward initiatives such as that. To ask the Scottish Government what initiatives it has planned to promote tourism in the South Scotland region. Our programme for government clearly sets out our on-going commitment to promoting tourism in the south of Scotland. In the coming year, we will provide VisitScotland with an additional £500,000 to develop a marketing strategy that further highlights the unique tourism opportunities in the south of Scotland. We have also allocated £500,000 of capital funding to develop forest tourism, enhancing visitor experiences and growing leisure activities within the Tweed valley forest park, Galloway forest park and on the Solway coast. The new South of Scotland economic partnership will also have a focus on developing the important contribution of tourism to the region, stimulating sustainable economic growth and encouraging tourism businesses to capitalise on what they already have to offer. Tourism forms a key part of the border's economy, contributing to more than £200 million to the region each year. It is a sector that looks set to grow, particularly as the effects of the Edinburgh region city deal are felt. What provision is the Scottish Government making to improve skills and employment opportunities in tourism for young people in the Scottish border? We have a tourism investment plan. We are actively engaged in using the developing the young workforce proposals to make sure that we can grow the opportunities for young people. I think that the skills development is one of the vital parts of what we need to do to take forward the tourism sector, to make sure that people realise that tourism is everybody's business and that there are multiple careers that you can have in tourism, but also to make sure that it is a career of choice. It is an aspect that we are actively involved in using the programmes that I have just described. To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made towards ensuring that the Galloway Viking Horde is displayed in Dumfries and Galloway. National Museum Scotland and Dumfries and Galloway Council have been in negotiations over a partnership agreement for the display of the Horde in the refurbished Cwcubry art gallery. As the council has yet felt unable to accept the agreement, I have offered to meet the convener of the council's community committee. Colin Smyth, I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer, but when I raised this issue with the cabinet secretary in June last year, she informed Parliament that she would host a summit involving National Museum Scotland and Dumfries and Galloway to broker an agreement on displaying the Horde in the region. A date for that summit was set, but it was cancelled by the cabinet secretary. Nine months later, the cabinet secretary said that there will not be a meeting, but again there is still no date for that meeting to take place, despite the fact that Cwcubry art gallery is due to open within the next few weeks. Does the cabinet secretary acknowledge the huge frustration in Dumfries and Galloway that a major tourism opportunity for the region is being missed because of the current impasse between National Museums and Dumfries and Galloway Council, in particular the barriers that are being put in place by National Museum Scotland? Will she intervene urgently to ensure that we have a significant exhibition in Dumfries and Galloway sooner rather than later? I was very keen to hold a summit to bring people together to broker an agreement, but at the request of Dumfries and Galloway Council themselves and the National Museum of Scotland, because their negotiations and discussions were taking place, the progress was being made that they felt that that would not be appropriate at this time. Despite officials' advice to Dumfries and Galloway, the proposal that was being put forward for the National Museum was one that they should accept. That has not happened yet, so I am keen to break the impasse, but I think that there are a number of misunderstandings, not least what will be an offer. I am keen to ensure that the Galloway horde—I would stress that we should call it the Galloway horde, not as the member says, the Viking horde, because I have seen some of the collection and there are various parts from different parts of our history. The opportunities are absolutely there. I have made my commitment to this Parliament and to the people of Galloway that there will be a significant part of that horde on permanent display in Cwcubriart gallery. To make sure that the people of Galloway can have that as a tourist attraction, I am determined that that will happen. That is why I am keen and I have intervened to make sure that I can meet with the council to find out what the problems they have with it. To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to build on the impact that the north coast 500 route has had on tourism. The north coast 500 continues to be a huge success in encouraging visitors to the north islands, one of the Scotland's most outstanding areas of scenic beauty. The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring that this increase has positive outcomes for the communities and local businesses on the route. The NC500 working group, chaired by Helen's and Helen's Enterprise, has expanded upon its work to address the issues and opportunities that have been identified on community engagement, infrastructure development, protection and enhancement of the environment. The delivery plan from that working group will be available in the summer and VisitScotland is also actively working with partners for the benefit of the wider area to make sure that people visit out with the summer season and off the main route. Rhoda Grant Highland Council has over 7,000 kilometres of road to maintain. Over 830 of that is the north coast 500. A constituent recently commented to me that we used to drive on the left-hand side of the road, but now we drive on what is left of the road. What assistance is the Scottish Government giving to Highland Council to repair and upgrade that iconic route? I am not the transport minister and Helen's and Helen's Council are responsible for the roads that they administer, but we are very conscious and that is why Helen's and Helen's Enterprise is chairing that working group to look at the infrastructure issues and to work with the council and other bodies to make sure that we have an offer across the north coast 500 that suits the needs of visitors. I think that talking in extremes like that is not a good advert for the north coast 500. Members have to be very careful as to what will be reported as to whether people can access the north coast 500. That is a very dangerous thing that she has just said. Edward Mountain Thank you, Presiding Officer. If I could drill Dan into that answer a wee bit more, the leader of the council wrote to the First Minister in August last year with a request for an additional £2.5 million to fund essential repairs on the north coast 500 to particularly sustain tourism. Is the minister in a position to confirm whether she discussed that with the First Minister and, if so, what her advice to the First Minister was regarding this request in relation to tourism? I am afraid that the answer to the First Minister is that both the Conservatives and the Labour Party have voted against the budget, so, in terms of expecting additional funding, I do not think that you can come here and ask for more money when you vote against the budget. That concludes the culture questions. We move on to justice and the law officers. To ask the Scottish Government what work it is carrying out in partnership with the Lost Society of Scotland to support putting Scottish law firms on the global map. The Scottish Government is working in partnership with Scottish Development International and the Law Society of Scotland to promote an exciting new initiative, Scottish Legal International. It is designed to raise the profile of Scots law and its justice system to an international audience and to seek opportunities for inward investment in legal services in Scotland. The work of Scottish Legal International, along with other strands of work, will allow us to bring to bear the unique Scottish legal system and contribute to the global effort among international partners to tackle dynamic threats, such as, for example, those in cyberspace that can impact on Scotland's citizens, its businesses and its public services. I thank the Minister for that answer. Many people appreciate the quality of the Scottish legal system. They, including some law firms themselves, might not often consider that there is an economic opportunity for Scotland's legal sector internationally. I therefore ask how the newly launched Scottish Legal International, as mentioned by the Minister and the Partnership of the SDI, can help law firms to grasp global opportunities to contribute to Scotland's economic growth. Scottish Legal International is cheered at the moment by Paul Carlyle of Shepard and Wedderburn. It is a joint initiative, developed by Paul Carlyle and some nine rather of Scotland's top commercial law firms, in partnership with Scottish Development International and the Law Society of Scotland, working collaboratively to promote all that Scotland has to offer as a place to invest in legal services and as a trading partner offering the very best of legal knowledge, expertise and networks to a global audience. To ask the Scottish Government for its response to the criminal justice social work statistics published on 6 February 2018. The criminal justice social work statistics in Scotland 2016-17 contain valuable information in relation to criminal justice social work activity at a national level, ranging from diversion from prosecution to community sentences such as the community payback order to statutory through care. We have protected criminal justice social work funding for local authorities at record levels of £100 million per annum. The Scottish Government's shift towards more community sentencing, including the introduction of CPOs, has greatly benefited Scotland's communities. Gordon Lindhurst. I think the minister for that answer, but she will be aware that completion rates for community payback orders have fallen for the third year in a row, resulting in a community justice system that lets one in three convicted offenders nearly 6,000 criminals off the hook. What action is the minister taking to address the mess of numerous delays in the system in which a third of CPO work placements fail to start within the Scottish Government's own seven-day target? Well, I would say to the member that, of course, in terms of the 2016-17 statistics as regards completion rates, that was only very slightly down on the previous year. I think it was 0.4 per cent. So it's a very marginal decrease. Also, it may interest the member to note that completion rates for community payback orders in the member's own region have actually increased since last year's publication of stats, with all areas, aside from East Lothian, improving, in fact. Of course, the matter of ensuring that CPOs are completed is entirely for the relevant local authority. A CPO is a court-mandated order, and the Scottish Government would expect that local authorities would prioritise ensuring that they are completed accordingly. I would also say that CPOs deliver tangible benefits to communities by making individuals payback for the damage caused by their crimes by carrying out unpaid work. Finally, it would be very important to reiterate that we know that the evidence shows that individuals released from a custodial sentence of 12 months or less are reconvicted nearly twice as often as those given a CPO. Can the minister say whether local authorities will be provided with further guidance on managing breaches of community payback orders? Social Work case managers have a number of options that are indeed open to them in cases of breach, including returning the case to court, and the legislation provides the courts with a range of sanctions in those cases, including imposing a fine and varying the CP order. We will, of course, continue to seek opportunities to strengthen and support the use of community payback orders, and work is, in fact, on-going to the member to update the national practice guidance, which will help to bring greater clarity to breach and compliance processes. The minister will have seen in the statistics that the number of community alternatives to prison has failed to grow in recent years. Indeed, yesterday's statistics showed that the short sentences of under three months still make up around three in 10 prison sentences. Given the Government's presumption against short sentences and the apparently failing to work as intended, will the minister now look at what needs to be done to reduce the numbers of ineffective and expensive short sentences? The member will be aware, of course, that we are seeking, as indicated in the programme for government, to seek to extend the presumption in terms of short sentences because we know. I think that it is recognised also by the member that short sentences are not—casodial sentences are not effective and that is indeed what the evidence shows. It is fair to say that the current diversion measures are continuing at pace, including not just CPO's but also, for example, the fiscal work orders. I think that the completion rate over the last year or so was around 80 plus per cent, and that is important to bear in mind. Of course, the drug treatment and testing orders and, although completion rates fluctuate on an annual basis, that also reflects, firstly, the overall downward trend in court volumes and, of course, reflects the fact that such drug treatment and testing orders are targeted specifically at individuals with entrenched drug problems and chaotic lifestyles, which means that achieving significant increases in completion rates is challenging. I think that it is fair to look at each of the relevant diversion measures in terms of what they are seeking to do and who they are directed at and take that into account. Certainly, the member is absolutely correct to say that we need to look now at extending what is, indeed, only a presumption, but we need to do that with regard to custodial sentences. Can I thank the Presiding Officer and ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce drug use in prisons? The Scottish Prison Service takes a dual approach to reducing drug use in prison, focusing on both health and security measures. From a health perspective, the Scottish Prison Service strategy framework for the management of substance misuse in custody reflects the aims and objectives of the Scottish Government's national drug and alcohol strategies. It adopts the principle of recovery to reduce the harm caused by drug use. As the member will be aware, prisoner healthcare is the responsibility of the NHS and addiction services in prisons are provided in line with local NHS boards strategies. The Scottish Prison Service delivers the substance misuse pathway programme in order to help those in its care to lead a meaningful life-free from substance misuse and offending. In terms of security measures, the Scottish Prison Service deploys a variety of strategic, tactical and technological responses to reduce drug use in Scotland's prisons and invests in the development of new technology and staff training to detect, deter and reduce the availability and supply of illegal substances in Scotland's prisons. The Scottish Prison Service and Police Scotland work collaboratively and are committed to sharing information and intelligence in respect of criminal activity emanating from or impacting upon our prison estate. Both organisations are committed to seeking convictions for those who are introducing illegal substances. Over 2017, prisoner surveys show that nearly 40 per cent of Scottish prisoners have witnessed illegal drug use in jail. We know that drug use in prison is rising, and the number of prisoners caught taking drugs is at an eight-year high according to the last prison service annual report. It is a simple truth that drug addiction is an obstacle to rehabilitation. When will the SNP ensure that our prisons are secure environments that are meant to be? The cabinet secretary takes a rather simplistic view of the matter, and he should recognise that some 70 per cent of those who come into the Scottish Prison Service for periods of custody have a clear illegal drug use problem. Many of them, the vast majority of them, will be in prison for very short periods of time. To simply expect the Scottish Prison Service to be able to unpick those matters along with the NHS over such a short period of time, very often individuals who have got entrenched in long-standing drugs problems are quite, frankly, naive. However, what the Scottish Prison Service along with the NHS does is undertake a range of work in order to tackle drug misuse among prisoners once they come into their care. Alongside that, there are extensive measures that are put in place by the Scottish Prison Service to tackle the issue of drugs being brought into the prison estate. However, I am sure that the member is aware, if he considers this issue in any detail, that bringing drugs into a prison estate is not something that is peculiar to the Scottish Prison Service. He will be aware of the very significant problems that he has in England and Wales, which has contributed to the very marked problems that I have had with violence in recent months. The Scottish Prison Service takes forward very robust measures to prevent drugs from coming into the prison estate and, where appropriately, taking action alongside Police Scotland to deal with individuals who may be planning to bring in drugs or who have drugs when they are within the prison estate. As the cabinet secretary has already acknowledged in his previous answer, many people have a drug problem on entering prison. Does he therefore agree that it is vital that we continue to invest in programmes on tackling drug use? As I have mentioned, tackling the use and impact of drugs is not a challenge that is peculiar to Scotland or the Scottish Prison Service. The member will be aware that the national LDP standard expects that 90 per cent of people receive access to appropriate drug and alcohol treatment within three weeks. The latest figures show that, in prisons, 1,223 people started their first drug and alcohol treatment between July and September 2017, with 99 per cent waiting three weeks or less. The member and others will be aware that health ministers have also indicated that they are committed to refreshing our national drug strategy, which offers an opportunity to reinvigorate our approach to the changing drug landscape in Scotland. That includes looking at prisoner healthcare, which will form part of that refresh and will help to challenge those agencies that are responsible for dealing with those matters in looking at identifying new and more effective ways in tackling the issue, which is also backed by an additional £20 million that was set out in the programme for government by this Government to support this area of work. Pauline McNeill will let me know earlier that she is unable to make it for question 4. To ask the Scottish Government how the proposed changes to the roles of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service personnel will impact on retained fire stations. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is currently consulting its staff and, in fact, with members of the public on its service transformation proposals in the document Your Service, Your Voice. For retained duty system fire stations, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is proposing to recruit new whole-time rural manager positions in key locations across Scotland. Those managers will support the delivery of local RDS training, undertake preventative work and ensure the availability of appliances in RDS stations. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is also exploring the safe and planned introduction of new technology in vehicles in RDS fire stations, which can be safely deployed with a revised crewing model. I thank the minister for her response and welcome the measures set out. The minister will be aware of the challenges for many part-time fire crew members balancing work-and-home commitments with their firefighters duties, notably the training requirements, and that is particularly the case in an island community like Orkney. Will the minister therefore keep a whether eye and take steps to ensure that any additional training requirements that are pursuant to those reforms make recruitment and retention of retained duty fire crew any more difficult than they already are in Orkney and other rural areas going forward? Of course, Liam McArthur will well know that the challenges that face the retained duty system are not unique to his island and the north and, indeed, the whole of Scotland, but rather are shared in many other countries because, of course, people no longer live and work in the same community in many parts of the country. However, I am very well aware of the interests that Mr McArthur has shown in ensuring that the vital nation of training is truly recognised and that there is resource available in the northern isles. I will be happy, particularly on this particular snowy day, to keep a whether eye as Mr McArthur has asked me to do on ensuring that the SFRS maintain its absolute determination to ensure that training is very much at the fore of their activities. I understand that the fire service aims to recruit 20 full-time rural firefighters posts each year for the next three years, reaching a total of 60 by the end of 2020. Is that an ambition that the minister shares? I am very happy to say to the member that I shared the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's vision for the transformation of the service. Of course, discussions are very much on-going with, in particular, the unions and the workforce in general as to exactly what that transformation should look like. They are very interesting and exciting and innovative proposals included in their consultation document. I would encourage all members to consider responding to that, and certainly the general public who may be listening as well. It is certainly the case that there are a lot of exciting, innovative proposals to ensure that our fantastic Scottish Fire and Rescue Service can continue to meet the emerging risks of the 21st century in Scotland. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the proposed merger between Police Scotland and the British Transport Police. The Scottish Government is committed to delivering the benefits of a single command structure to provide integrated infrastructure policing in Scotland. The joint programme board set up to oversee the integration has been advised by Police Scotland and BTPA that operational aspects of the integration will not be ready by April 2019 as planned. As I said out in Parliament last week, we have therefore agreed that a replanning exercise should take place in the coming months to ensure that all aspects have a clear and realistic delivery plan in place. A safe and secure transition to the full integration of the British Transport Police in Scotland and Police Scotland remains our aim, and a clear focus on public safety is Parliament. I thank the cabinet secretary for that response. Last week I asked the cabinet secretary if he would listen to Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary Scotland and be forthcoming about the risks and drawbacks of the merger. He responded and I quote, The HMICS report came before we had published the explanatory notes and policy memorandum that went with the legislation. However, the bill was published in December 2016 and the HMICS report took place between February and April 2017. Will the cabinet secretary correct his previous comments on that? Will he consider commissioning an independent, transparent and arms-length analysis of the merger, as many experts are calling for? As we said out in detail when the bill was going through Parliament, the real benefits that would come from integrated policing with BTP being integrated with Police Scotland are broadly in a similar way to which the Conservative Party set out near manifesto at the last election to integrate BTP with civil nuclear police and with MOD policing. I assure the member that the replanning exercise that will be undertaken by the joint programme board and those members of the boards is all the key issues that need to be addressed going forward, as they have been doing, in order to make sure that there are detailed plans in place for the areas where progress still has to be made. Does the cabinet agree, given his last comments, that the Tory's constant criticism of the decision to merge Police Scotland and the British Transport Police is just rank political opportunism and incredibly hypocritical, given that they committed to do, just as you said, merge the Ministry of Defence Police and the British Transport Police? I do not know if it is for me to point out to the Conservative Party the hypocrisy in this matter, but it stands out, given its own commitment in its manifesto, to abolish British Transport Police, which they seem to want to conveniently ignore when it suits them. However, I assure the member that the actions that we are taking here in Scotland are to ensure, given the policy that has been pursued by the UK Government to abolish BTP, to ensure that we have appropriate infrastructure policing here in Scotland and to do so, with a single command structure and delivering a safe and appropriate service to the travelling public in Scotland on Scottish railways. Whether it will provide an update on Police Scotland's consultation regarding its 53 buildings that are no longer required. Police Scotland undertook a consultation on the disposal of 53 unused police premises across Scotland, which ran from 1 November 2017 to 31 January 2018. Responses are being collated and analysed and will be presented to the SPA board in due course. Responsibility for the police estate sits with the Scottish Police Authority. Gail Ross. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. I note that, from the 53 that are no longer required, that five are in my constituency. Will the cabinet secretary give an assurance that, where there is a desire within the community to take ownership of those buildings, everything will be done to help to facilitate that? I can confirm that Police Scotland has used its recent consultation on the disposal of unused police properties to raise awareness of the opportunities for community ownership provided by the community empowerment act. I and my other colleagues in the Government are very supportive of the potential benefits that can flow from communities' owning land and buildings. For that reason, the Government has set up the community ownership support service. The member may wish to make his constituents aware of the provisions that are available under the support service, which could assist them in potentially taking over some of those properties, but Police Scotland remains very open to the possibility of community ownership for some of those properties where there is a local case that can be made for such a transfer to take place. Thank you very much, and that concludes portfolio questions. We will now move on to the next item of business, which is a step