 Mae genlubus gryffau. pH21. Dave Thompson. A bod i'r gyflym, rwy'n ddwhiffrwyd regwmau tracef o'r ddiwygau hyfer o reau cydnebydd y ffordd i wneud y llifoedd hwynt. Cymru Alex Neil. Ar honan, NHS Highland y Secondly Service Change Proposal byw gwaith o ysgail y Calch yn southwes Ross. Yn y ffordd, rhaid diwylliannau ar y flodau 3 mgtigol, coentwch dros 29 agos 2014. Felly o nosfer o'r fyrdiad, NHS Highland y Third Rydych chi'n cramau i chi i chiwgol nôr yn gyda iawn bufyn. Rydyn ni os ymdegau achos, ac yn guweithio'n ddechrau bod wedi gwneud na gwiaith cwliftu. The national health service of Scotland bethys i chi'n gweithio that the proposals wiil be considered by its board at its meeting on 2 December 2014. Dave Thompson. Well, I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. I'm sure that he will also be aware that NHS Highland is to suspend the endoscopy services that currently operates on Skry. Ond o bobl yn erioedd gyda'r Ysgrifennu、 Fodol Blynyddiadau Llywodraeth Cymru, sy'n do sculptgylchai Llywodraeth Cymru, diwyddo'r ffasilydd gyda cymdeithas sy'n gwrthog a'i argynniad o'r anhygotu ei ddigon o'r llenig o'r llesgrifetau llosgrifetau llaw, fydd, ein gweithio. Yn o bobl yng Nghymru, bydd y blynyddiadau llosgrifetau llosgrifetau llosgrifetau i'ch chi dd feddordebiannau'r llesgrifetau llosgrifetau. ac mae'n rhaid i siaradau Oesbydd i'ch ddefnyddio'r gylawn, a bod yn gynnydd i atratau i Gwyl Gwysel i Gwyl Gwysel i Gwyl Gwyd Gwyd Gwyl Gwyd Gwysel i'ch ddefnyddio i Llywodraeth yr Maes Iergyn a Cyngor Nde, i gyd o'n tymen i drysiau sicrhau'u cyd-cyngor ddefnyddio i Gwyl Gwyl Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd Gwyd a oedden nhw'n llefnol. Gysylltu'r LHS Hyland o'r eisiau oedden nhw, o'i dod yn maes gyda'i cyffredin ni'n mynd i gyd. Felly dugon, dy'r ddych chi wedi gweldon nhw fel y bydd gysylltu'r LHS yn mynd i'n edrych am gweithio chi'n gweldon nhw, ac rwy'n defnyddio'n cael ei gael i'r rhai gwybod. Sgrifenni Llywodraeth Cymru yn y ddigon nhw yng Nghymru, a wlad ti'n fyddi i Gwlaffai Gwlad Rhyw bwysig iawn iddynt yn cyfask BIES Cymru, a ddych yn g jailwyr ngynhyrch a gyffredinol y ddych yn gafod gyda chi, oherwydd y gallai cyfask yn ei gweld fath o pethol yn ymgyrch teithasol yn gyfreithio ar hyn iawn, cyfan, yn teithasol yn gyffredinol, ddych am gofyn 4,826 patients to the Golden Jubilee hospital and 4,368 patients to Ross Hall hospital and Nuffield hospital, private health providers on Glasgow in order for the treatment time guarantee to be met. Does that not expose further creeping privatisation within NHS Scotland and highlight that the NHS in Scotland is not safe in the SNP's hands? The member has a bit of a cheek given that the main budget rate challenge for NHS Lanarkshire is the £50 million a year that has to pay in PFI charges, which we inherited from the previous administration. As far as privatisation is concerned, I have made it absolutely clear that the percentage of money that is spent on the private sector in Scotland is well under 1 per cent of the entire near £12 billion budget. Unlike south of the border, where they are privatising NHS staffing and estate and facilities, we are not doing that in Scotland. Where we purchase private sector capacity is because we do not have sufficient capacity in the national health service in a particular area, like the use of Ross Hall for certain procedures by NHS Lanarkshire. That is not privatisation, that is topping up our capacity. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs regarding employment in Scotland. That is not the question that I have on my sheet, Mr Hepburn. It is the question that I have on mine, Presiding Officer. It is the one that I lodged. Can I offer our apologies? That is my sheet that is wrong. Minister, would you like to answer the question, as asked by the member? No formal discussions have taken place with HMRC. That, of course, is a reserved matter. However, I have written to the UK Government expressing our concerns and highlighting our policy of no compulsory redundancies within the Scottish public sector and asking what alternative employment options the UK Government has in place to protect jobs in Scotland. We will continue to support and assist redeployment of staff through existing mechanisms and our directorate officials will liaise with HMRC and monitor the situation. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I am over my brief confusion. HMRC has suggested that it will outsource male room facilities. That threatens some 40 jobs at their location in Cumbernauld. Of course, that is the tip of the iceberg, PCS, suggesting that the HMRC is going to shed thousands of jobs in coming years. Does the minister agree with me that that undermines local economies where HMRC is located, such as in Cumbernauld, and that undermines HMRC's ability to collect tax? I agree with Mr Hepburn, who has pursued the matter assiduously on behalf of his constituents. We understand from HMRC that they say that they will need fewer people in certain roles across the whole of the UK, including post-handling. In June, HMRC announced that it will close two of its five regional postrooms by the end of 2014. We believe that their current thinking is that the remaining three, including Cumbernauld, will close by March 2015. HMRC has said that it will be able to tell its staff more by mid-October. One has to say that this is not really a very good way to handle staff relations, Presiding Officer. In particular, we in the Scottish Government who tried to treat our public servants with appropriate respect would strongly advocate that the UK Government starts to look at the way that it handles matters a bit more carefully, and in particular to adopt the no compulsory redundancy policy of the Scottish Government. I am grateful for Mr Hepburn to allow us an opportunity to make that our position clear. I would express my concern for his constituents who face a very uncertain future. To ask the Scottish Government how investment in hybrid ferries will contribute to its low-carbon targets. The Scottish Government has invested over £20 million to construct two hybrid ferries, the MV Hallig and the MV Lockenvar. Mr Stevenson was involved in his project from its early days and cut the first steel for the MV Hallig in January 2012. The Deputy First Minister announced on 29 September that a third hybrid ferry would be ordered from Ferguson Marine Engineering Ltd. Those low-emission hybrid ferries, built in Scotland, are helping to contribute to the Scottish Government's targets on cutting climate change emissions with initial operational experience indicating around a 28 per cent fuel saving and an associated reduction in carbon emissions. Stuart Stevenson will be very welcome that there is a third hybrid ferry, and I was very pleased to be associated with the previous initiatives. Can the minister tell us what investment is being made into other forms of public transport in Scotland to ensure that targets on carbon emissions are met? The Scottish Government invests over £1 billion per year in public and sustainable transport to encourage people on to public transport and active travel modes. As I mentioned yesterday in the new ScotRail franchise to Abilio, it has committed to a range of carbon saving initiatives, which include at least 3,500 additional cycle parking spaces, £100,000 per annum sustainability, innovation fund and electric car charging points in at least 50 station car parks. In addition, of course, Stuart Stevenson will be aware that we have, since 2010, given over £10 million to support the purchase of 126 green buses. I also welcome the news that the third hybrid ferry has been awarded to Ferguson, so we hope that that goes through everything will be okay there. How can the Scottish Government help to market that innovative vessel wider than the UK market? Clearly, there is a market for those types of ships beyond Scotland. Duncan McNeill raises an important point. How can we make sure that we potentially exploit as far as possible what is a very innovative technology? The best way that we can do that, first of all, is by placing the orders that we have done but also by operating the vessels ourselves, making the reductions in fuel consumption and the environmental benefits that we have. Obviously, there is a piece of work to be done in addition to what has already been done to make sure that the wider world and the market out there is aware of the potential of those vessels and the opportunities that we have opened up for Ferguson's and others to produce more of those vessels in the future. Kenneth Gibson Thank you, Presiding Officer. The minister will be aware that Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited in Caledonia McBrain will place a notice in the official journal of the European Communities this month indicating their plans to order a new address into broadic ferry. Can he confirm that the specification will be for a hybrid ferry that the contract will place in the spring of next year and that it will be well within the capability and capacity of Ferguson's shipbuilders of Port Glasgow to build it? I am afraid that I cannot confirm that the specification will be for a hybrid ferry because we are considering the potential for liquefied natural gas as well, but I can confirm that the contract will be placed in the spring of next year and that it will be well within the capability and capacity of Ferguson's shipbuilders of Port Glasgow to build it. To ask the Scottish Government how it is monitoring proposals for the local government budget savings to ensure that they have no adverse consequences for public safety. Councils are accountable to the local citizens for the work that they do. They are, of course, expected to comply with all legislative and regulatory burdens. Single outcome agreements, SOAs, set out agreed priorities for local areas. Those are progressed by community planning partnerships and provide the framework for community safety partnerships to coordinate a joint agency response to community safety issues. I thank the minister for that response. In that case, does the minister consider that when residents pay their council tax they are fully entitled to adequate and safe street lighting? At the recent proposal from South Lanarkshire Council to de-energise the street lighting in the evening in Castle Avenue, a busy area for joggers, dog walkers and cyclists cannot be justified on those grounds and could be potentially dangerous? I am not fully aware of the full facts of that local authorities current exercise. I am happy to explore it, but, of course, I would expect that public health and safety is foremost in local authorities' minds when they are making budget decisions, although they are also delivering programmes of energy efficiency and decarbonisation of the energy sector. Of course, public interest and safety should be clear in their minds when they are taking such decisions. According to the Scottish Government's own statistics published this weekend, 70,000 posts have disappeared from local authorities since 2008. Can the minister tell the chamber how many of those jobs were related to community safety initiatives? I do not have that information to hand, but what I know is that local government settlements have been fair and local government would certainly agree with that. I think that the fair approach that we have taken with local government has ensured that they have been able to deliver efficiencies in a way that has not led to the mass redundancies that were seen south of the border. Those fair settlements will ensure that local government is equipped to continue delivering the kind of quality services that we would all expect. I ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of the lack of funding affecting the Men's 10K event in Glasgow run by the Men's Health Forum of Scotland and what it can do to secure the future of the event. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of promoting men's health, and that is why we have provided over £500,000 to Men's Health Forum Scotland between 2007 and 2012. I understand that there have been issues in secure funding for the 2015 Glasgow Men's 10K event. That type of event can be fun and a visible way to promote causes such as better men's health. It is essential, however, that such events are sustainable as well as successful. The Scottish Government provides funding to jog Scotland who have provided expert advice and support to Men's Health Forum Scotland in marketing the 2014 event and organising the associated 5K run. Patrick Harvie Thank you, Presiding Officer. I should declare an interest as having participated in the 10K event for the last few years, along with thousands of other men, the vast majority of whom say that participation in the event has encouraged them to be fit, healthy and active all year round, not just at the event itself. Following the incredible sporting year that we have had in terms of elite sport in Scotland, surely it would be a disaster if, in what would have been the 10th anniversary year of the event, it ceases to exist. I urge the cabinet secretary to explore any options with contact organisations or other potential partners who could secure a future for this event. Good for Patrick Harvie, for taking part. We are well done in a good example. In terms of going forward with the event next year, jog Scotland has been in discussions with the organisation. I am happy to ask my officials to work with jog Scotland to explore with the organisation what options could allow the 2015 and future events to happen, but they have to be sustainable. I think that the organisation has to look at its business case and I think that that is where there have been some on-going discussions with jog Scotland. However, I am happy to ask my officials to meet with jog Scotland with the organisation again and see whether there is anything more that can be done to get the event happening next year. Question 7, Gil Paterson. Thanks, Presiding Officer. Can I ask the Scottish Government how many people have been supported by the protection of funding for the council tax reduction scheme? According to official statistics published on 30 September 2014, 537,730 people in Scotland are currently supported in meeting their council tax liabilities through the council tax reduction scheme. I thank the minister for that answer and say that I welcome measures such as the council tax reduction scheme that the Scottish Government is putting in place to help those in Scotland who are paying a heavy price for the UK Government's welfare reforms. Does the cabinet secretary share my concerns that George Osborne frees in regards to the in-work benefits and the impact that it will have on the working poor in Scotland? Does he agree that control over welfare is something that the Smith commission needs to deliver? The supplement is a bit broader than the question, minister. I can say in response that the attacks on working people this time from the Tory UK Government is of concern, but we would agree essentially with the point that in order to tackle poverty and protect citizens from future cuts, of course we require the powers to be able to do so. In that case, we will of course make to the Smith commission. Presiding Officer, to ask the Scottish Government what its position is and powers relating to gambling being devolved. During the referendum campaign, the Government identified the advantages of this Parliament making decisions on gambling. Many of those advantages would also be realised by devolution of gambling in the Plans Scotland Bill. The Government will be playing a full part in the Smith commission in arguing for extensive devolution of further substantial powers to Scotland in line with the vow made by the UK parties during the referendum. I thank the minister for that response. The minister will be aware of setting the active campaign up and running in relation to fixed dollars betting terminals, and that includes holding a member's debate here in Parliament earlier on this year. Does the minister agree with me that the gambling powers should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament in order to allow for gambling legislation to be created in line with town centre planning policy and for action to be taken in Scotland in a way that currently is not across the UK? Yes, I do. I commend Stuart McMillan's work on this particular issue and to be able to realise the aspirations from many members across the parties in this chamber and our partners in local government and other stakeholders. Does we require the powers around gambling, and that is also a case that it will make to the Smith commission so that we can realise the aspirations to tackle some of the problem of gambling that is experienced in Scotland? To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the effectiveness of the arrangements relating to the property factors Scotland Act 2011 and its operation. Minister Margaret Burgess The Property Factor Scotland Act 2011 sets minimum standards for the property management industry and provides protections for homeowners who use the services of a property factor. The act requires the Scottish ministers to maintain a register of property factors and requires each factor to be registered with ministers and to abide by a statutory code of conduct. The Scottish Government has put in place arrangements that enable ministers and property factors to comply with their duties under the act. Does the minister believe that there is any flexibility in the system regarding land-owning property factors whereby the owners are the ones on the new housing estate who would be able to decide on the green space ownership and its maintenance? There are provisions in the Title Conditions Scotland Act 2003 on the dismissal and replacement of factors. We are aware that there are potential difficulties in relation to land-owning maintenance companies and, following the Justice Committee's report last year into the effectiveness of the 2003 act, the Scottish Government is preparing a voluntary code of practice on the dismissal and replacement of land-owning land maintenance companies. We intend to consult key bodies in the draft of the code shortly and we will keep the member up to date on that. Thank you. Before we move to the next slide of business, members will wish to join me in welcoming to the gallery His Excellency Mr Pascuali Terracciano, the ambassador of Italy to the United Kingdom.