 Hiner, rhyw marfrwyddon i gilydd. Fy nidentally, Scotland farms degen i'rried Caerdydd heb amser ynghylchiau ar Nos Gyraint Gaisairysfynfaol Llyrdoeddfa ynghylchedd a Gyllidau I yn roi mwynau ateb y sprwyddoethol sydd rysyn, ond rwy'n llwybu yma'r llwy. Oswn astag i gyfan fod o fodэnau drafodau a'r bydwyr yn unig eich gweithio ar gyfer, ac mae'n iawn i'ch gweithio i Gweithio i Gwledygau a Eurwyr i gyffredinol i gael i Gwledyg gael a'r bydwyr. Felly, mae'r meddwl cofawr yn perff一定要n oysg ffansiau cysylltu i Gwledyg Gweithwyr a'r unrhynid funding will help to support women and children in Ukraine and neighbouring countries. I thank the minister for that answer. Over the last week, we have all seen over 2 million refugees, the majority of which are women and children fleeing war in UK and Ukraine. I have just heard that the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, was not present to answer an urgent question on visa requirements in letting refugees in in Westminster just now. Given the support that we have seen across Europe, does the minister think that the UK Government must step up and introduce a comprehensive settlement scheme as soon as possible and help those people who are much in need of support and a home, like he just said in his last answer? Yes, absolutely. The Scottish Government and Scotland's local authorities have made clear to the UK Government that they stand ready to offer refuge and sanctuary where necessary for those who may be displaced. The UK Government's current proposals are insufficient and the Scottish Government continues to urgently call on the UK Government to act now and develop a comprehensive resettlement programme. It is vital that rapid, safe and legal routes are established immediately. I am also extremely concerned at the mixed messages being sent out to people desperate to navigate their way through the complex bureaucratic systems to reach the UK. That is a message that has also been made clear by MPs across the chamber direct to the Home Office ministers in the last hour. I also note reports suggesting that the UK visa centre being open for Ukrainian refugees present in Calais might actually be opened 70 miles away in Lille. That just exemplifies the tone-deaf, totally inadequate response from the UK Government regarding Ukrainian refugees. I thank the minister for that answer, as depressing as some of that information is. This International Women's Day, women across the globe are fighting for equality. We need to mention that there are many brave women in Russia who have been protesting Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine. It is unlikely that they will see anything from the west as the regime shuts down internet sites, though it will not like. However, those words of solidarity matter if they get through. Can I ask the cabinet secretary what message the Scottish Government has for brave Russian women and girls protesting the regime and caught up in the violence that they are subjected to when they protest? Gillian Martin is absolutely right. It is devastating and shocking to see 2 million people from the Ukraine, the majority of whom are women and children, having to flee their country from war and violence. On International Women's Day, which is meant to be a day that Governments demonstrate their commitment to making our world a safer, more equal world for women and girls, we can see that Putin has no respect for the lives of anyone. I can only applaud the brave women in Russia who have been protesting against Putin's barbaric invasion and say to them very clearly that our issue is with Putin and his regime, and we know that those barbaric acts are not in your name. This morning, the Scottish Embassy to the UK put out a statement expressing gratitude to UK citizens and organisations who have contributed aid to the Ukraine crisis. They also asked those wishing to help not to organise further collections of in-kind donations due to the time and effort that it takes to distribute such help. Instead, they asked people to organise fundraisers and directed donations to verify organisations to use those funds in accordance with the strict needs of those affected and the effective operation in the long term. What work is the Scottish Government doing to ensure that the message gets across, while not diminishing the generosity and compassion of Scots who have come together over the last few weeks to give aid and assistance in whatever way they can? Donald Cameron is absolutely right that we absolutely applaud once again the generosity in kind and in spirit of the people of Scotland who are looking to, in practical, in financial and gift and aid terms, do everything that they can to support the people in Ukraine who are suffering the horrors of war. The Scottish Government has been working actively and with much vigour over the last few days to try to make sure that we are supporting aid getting to Ukraine in the best possible way. We would encourage people to support the financial appeals that have been made, particularly through the Devat Disasters Emergency Committee, to ensure that that aid gets effectively and quickly to where it is needed. Once again, we thank the people of Scotland for their generosity and that front, too, over £10 million has been raised there. I ask them to continue in that generosity of spirit going forward. Alongside the harrowing images of families playing their homes, we have heard reports of black and minority ethnic Ukrainian refugees being denied exit from Ukraine or being subjected to different treatment. I am sure that we can all agree that no one fleeing conflict should have to face inhumane and unnecessary hurdles when seeking refuge. Can I therefore ask the minister to what extent has the experience of Glasgow in welcoming and integrating refugees and asylum seekers influenced its approach to the Ukrainian crisis? Thank you for that question and she is absolutely right. Scotland has a long history of welcoming people of all nationalities and faiths, including those seeking refuge and asylum from war and terror elsewhere. We are committed to supporting their integration into our communities and providing safety and security that they need to begin to rebuild their lives. Scotland stands ready to offer refuge and sanctuary for those who may be displaced, as we did with the Syrian resettlement programme, which saw all 32 local authorities in Scotland participate and welcome over 3,300 refugees into their communities. We must ensure that we learn the lessons from this programme and the Afghan resettlement schemes in order to provide rapid and appropriate support to those who need it fleeing from Ukraine. I thank the minister for that answer and ask for support for local organisations working with our councils. What preparation work is being done at the moment in the hope that we will be able to support those people who are fleeing from Ukraine, particularly the women and children? The conversations with COSLA are active. The ministerial portfolio has been in discussions a lot, as has the cabinet secretary for social security and social justice. It has also been in discussions with COSLA to ensure that we are ready to welcome Ukrainian refugees coming to Scotland when they are able to get here, when the bureaucracy and the intransigence of the UK Government is finally overcome and we have a situation that allows the people fleeing the horrors of war in Ukraine to come here and make Scotland their home. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review its position on North Sea oil and gas exploration and production in relation to the security of Scotland's energy supply. The Scottish Government has been clear that unlimited extraction of fossil fuels is not consistent with its climate obligations. Scotland's energy sector has a crucial role to play as Europe and the world moves beyond the age of fossil fuels, and we can be a key part of a solution that seeks to ensure energy security amid on-going economic and geopolitical turbulence. At the Scottish Renewables Conference today, I made the point that renewable power could provide a more consistent and stable form of energy supply in the wake of rising prices and unpredictable supplies of oil and gas. Scotland has strong, has among the richest renewable energy production potential in the whole of Europe, but it is unfairly penalised when it comes to transmission charges applied, given a direct disincentive to producers and investors. Its focus is now on achieving the fastest possible just transition for the oil and gas sector, when it delivers jobs and economic benefit, ensures energy security and meets the climate obligations. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer, which boils down to the fact that the Scottish Government will not be reviewing its position. People will hope that, before concluding that security of supply, environmental benefit and ensuring that we cut off funding to Russia are not reasons enough to pursue domestic oil and gas, a full investigation into future energy security was carried out. Following his ramping up of renewables, in what year does the cabinet secretary's research project that renewables will consistently cover 100 per cent of Scotland's energy without ever needing oil and gas? When does his research say that Scotland will have no further need for imported oil and gas? I am sure that the member will recognise that Scotland and the UK as a whole has a security of energy supply that stands at the present moment. It has a very low reliance on importing oil and gas from Russia, around about 2 per cent, which could easily be displaced by alternative routes. I think that we are wrong for the member to try to give the impression that there is an issue around security of supply. As he will also be aware, we are at the point where we have an equivalent of Scotland's domestic electricity supply, some 80-98 per cent of it, now coming from renewable sources. We have been ramping that up over recent years and we plan to ramp that up yet further. The outcome from the Scotland leasing round demonstrates the scale of ambition that there is to invest in Scotland's renewable sector, which could have a massive, not only environmental but economic boost to Scotland, not just in renewable energy but also in hydrogen power, which we make as not only the provision of hydrogen for our own domestic uses but also as a net exporter to other parts of Europe. Scotland is well placed in its energy transition and the policies and approaches that the Government is taking will make sure that we continue to drive that forward in the years to come. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer, but many others take a very different view from the cabinet secretary. The UK Government has been clear that we must ramp up domestic gas production to replace Russian supplies and reduce costs on UK families. Since Sunday, Messer's Blackford and Smith MP and Ewing MSP have also demanded more home-grown gas for security of supply, not least because, as Ian Blackford put it, buying Russian energy funds put in war. An unnamed SNP minister said in the weekend papers, what is puzzling to many is that, when you have a domestic supply, why would you not want to use that for the benefit of people here and to stop paying for supply from elsewhere, particularly if it benefits Russians? What evidence does the cabinet secretary have that convinces him that, in rejecting more domestic production, he and Nicola Sturgeon are right, and everybody else is wrong? The climate crisis that we face has not gone away. You only have to look at the report that came from the IPCC just the other week, but it is very clearly the scale and nature of the climate challenge that we face and the need to make sure that we take appropriate action to deal with that. The answer to the member's question is to step up the decarbonisation of our energy systems, just in the way in which Germany is proposing to do by bringing forward the target by some 15 years, just by the way in which the Dutch Prime Minister set out yesterday when he was in London sharing a platform with Boris Johnson, the answer to this is to decarbonise at a faster rate so that we do not have a dependency on oil and gas. That is the answer to this. The failure of the UK Government to recognise that is demonstrated by the way in which it continues to have transmission charges that penalise Scottish projects, making them the most expensive in the whole of the UK to take forward, causing businesses to choose to put their investments elsewhere and also failing to take forward projects such as the Scottish cluster and carbon capture and utilisation, the best-placed project in the whole of the UK to demonstrate a key form of technology that can help to deal with the energy transition but also meet our climate change targets. What we need from the UK Government is a level of ambition that matches ours in decarbonising our energy system and meeting our climate change obligations. There is much interest in this question. I would like to take those who have pressed. I would be grateful for short and succinct questions and responses. Given that the SNP promised there would be 130,000 renewable jobs by 2020 but for the fourth year running, the number has fallen and sits at just over 20,000. Oil and gas workers simply do not trust the Government when they talk about a just transition as the Cabinet Secretary has just done. If the Government is serious about a just transition, will the Cabinet Secretary commit to every single penny raised from the Scotland leasing round being ring-fenced for investment directly related to opportunities created by that leasing to ensure that the vast majority of supply chain jobs are in Scotland instead of off-shoring those jobs in the same way that the Government has off-shored the profits? Two key points here. The first of those points is that it is important that as we see our reliance on oil and gas reducing that we deliver a just transition. That is why as part of our refresh of the energy strategy we are also taking forward our just transition planning to make sure that it aligns with our energy policy for the sector to support those in the oil and gas sector to move it into a renewable energy sector as well. The second point that I would make to the member on the revenues that are generated by Scotland. As has been set out from the options, funding payments that will be made by those who have been giving leasing options is that we will use that money to prioritise our investment in tackling climate change and also tackling biodiversity loss. The twin crisis that we face is part of the global challenge and we will make sure that that funding is used in a way that helps to deliver jobs and also to protect our natural environment and tackle climate change. I can give the member an assurance that this Government is absolutely determined to make sure that we capitalise on not just environmental but also the economic benefits of Scotland to deliver a just transition for the oil and gas sector in Scotland but also to protect and enhance our natural environment for the years to come. Minister, we know that Russia's invasion of Ukraine could result in a significant increase in energy bills, which will be a huge concern to many households across Scotland already facing a cross-11 crisis. Given that energy is reserved, will the Scottish Government continue to push the UK Government to cut VAT on energy bills which would be one of the most simple means of helping energy consumers in the short term? We have now raised this issue with the UK Government on a number of occasions that they need to take seriously the whole cost of living crisis that households are facing. It is going to result in a significant number of people in Scotland ending up in fuel poverty and in extreme fuel poverty. As we can now see, the measures that have been taken forward by the UK Government are to some degree nothing more than smoking millers. Even the £150 that people are meant to get as a discount on their council tax payment turns out that there is no new money from the UK Government to support that. This is an issue that the UK Government, I think, has failed to recognise is going to blow up in their face at some point in the future, because households are facing extreme financial challenge now, particularly those in lower incomes. It is time for the UK Government to face up to that and to put serious financial resources in place to support households who are experiencing those difficulties. It could be removing that on fuel bills. It could be about providing new money to help to meet the cost of living crisis. It could also involve making sure that the loans that they are providing to people over the course of this year is actually converted into a grant in order to support them, rather than playing out a game that is nothing more than smoking millers when families are struggling to actually decide on whether they can heat their homes or put food on the table. Mark Ruskell. Across Europe, Governments are waking up to the fact that we must end our dependency on oil and gas in order to create a safe and secure world. Does the cabinet secretary agree that the UK Tory Government needs to urgently invest in renewables and insulation? Instead of listening to likes of Liam Kerr and Nigel Farage who would rather plunge households into poverty by locking us into a future of volatile gas prices and climate breakdown? Liam Kerr and Nigel Farage are joined at the hip clearly when it comes to energy policy, Mr Ruskell. I do not know if Liam Kerr would entirely agree with that. However, let me say this. What I think is extremely important here is that we need to make sure that we do not lose sight of the climate crisis that we face. We will have to reflect on the report that was published by the IPCC just over a week ago, demonstrating not just the extent to which climate change has already locked into society, greater and more damaging than was previously thought, but also that we are at risk of not meeting our climate change obligations because of the lack of action that has been taken on an international basis. The report was described as being called an atlas of human suffering for good reason. Climate change threatens human wellbeing, billions are vulnerable and some impacts are already here, extreme weather. The 1.5 degrees target is important to prevent even worse. Not my words, but the words of Maurice Golden just last week when he described the report. What we need is some honesty from the Conservative party about the need to take the action that is necessary to tackle climate change rather than playing petty politics on issues that they fail to bring forward substantial answers on. Beatrice Withert. Does the cabinet secretary recognise the importance of the thousands of onshore jobs in the Scottish supply chain supporting North Sea oil and gas and that their transferable skills are critical to the innovation and development of renewables? The member raises an important point, because our oil and gas sector is a strength to our renewable sector in Scotland as part of our energy transition. We can see from the assessment work that has already been carried out in the oil and gas sector that many of those who have skills in oil and gas have skills that are highly transferable to new low-carbon energy systems and into the renewable energy sector. What we need to do is to make sure that we capitalise on that. That is why part of our energy and new energy strategy will also be taking forward the just transition at planning for the energy sector to make sure that we are delivering the type of support and assistance to assist those in the oil and gas sector to transfer into the new low-carbon energies of the future. That concludes topical questions.