 I remind members of the Covid-related measures that are in place and that face covering should be worn when we are moving around the chamber and across the Holyrood campus. The next item of business is portfolio questions. The portfolio this afternoon is constitution, external affairs and culture. In order to get in as many questions as possible, I would appreciate succinct questions and answers. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020. The UK Internal Market Act represents an unprecedented assault on the powers and the responsibilities of the Scottish Government and of the Scottish Parliament. It was introduced despite an explicit refusal of consent by this Parliament and by the Welsh Senate and my ministerial colleagues regularly made clear to the UK Government our continued opposition to the act and our concern about the many ways it is being used by UK ministers to constrain and undermine decisions made by Scottish ministers and by the Scottish Parliament. Thank you cabinet secretary. I should have reminded members that if you do want to ask a supplementary question that you should press R in the chat function of the request to speak button and Michelle Thompson. The internal market act was passed by Westminster in the full knowledge, as has been stated, that conferred the right to alter the powers of this Scottish Parliament without our permission. Whilst UK ministers may give some limited commitment to allow for policy divergence, the act fundamentally changes the relationship with all of all the institutions. Is this proof that power involved is power retained and can the cabinet secretary advise what options the Scottish Government has at its disposal to preserve the integrity of this Parliament? I thank my friend for that follow-up question. People in Scotland, of course, voted overwhelmingly to set up the Scottish Parliament after years of Westminster governments ignoring their wishes and imposing unwelcome damaging policies. Devolution has improved people's lives in Scotland and delivered governments that they have chosen. This Parliament has introduced free personal care, its abolished university tuition fees and no one is now charged for prescriptions. The UK Government is now taking control, once again, of key devolved powers without the consent from Scotland. It is using Brexit as an excuse to rewrite and undermine the devolution settlement. The internal market act allows it to take money from this Parliament and to spend it according to the choices of UK ministers, not elected in this country, not the priorities of democratically decided in Scotland rather than by UK Government ministers. The act will also undermine future laws passed in the Scottish Parliament in areas such as food standards, animal welfare and environmental protection, and that is not just happening in Scotland. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the expansion of the Global Scott Network. The programme for government 2021-22 committed to growing the Global Scott Network to 1,500 members by 2023, and as of 23 September 2021, there were 1,009 Global Scots. That has grown from 665 members when a trading nation was published in 2019. The network recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and has been acknowledged by the World Bank as an exemplar on how it asked for economic growth and support. Consisting of entrepreneurs, business leaders, community figureheads and Global Scots are a vital component of Scotland's international network, providing Scottish companies with critical market insights. The new Global Scott digital platform launched in July 2020 allows members and companies to connect with each other more easily, and Global Scots are involved in regional advisory groups, furthering export and investment opportunities for Scotland across a range of countries globally. In 2019, the SNP announced plans to expand the Global Scott Network from 600 to 2,000 members by 2021. As we just heard, those targets are nowhere near to being met with just over 1,000 members. I feel that they appreciate that the Covid pandemic would have made it more difficult to expand the network, but does the minister share my disappointment that this vital network is not reaching its full potential? I will go and check those targets. I do not think that it was to grow by 2021. A trading nation is a plan for a 10-year effort to grow Scotland's export activity. The member, if he is engaged with Global Scots, will understand the huge value that he brings to Scotland's networks. He will understand the value that businesses get from that. He will also understand that the requirement to make sure that Global Scots that come on to the network are of sufficient standard and ranking within their business and their business communities to be able to contribute fully under their own steam to Scotland's export and investment potentials. I will say to the member that, if he is aware—I know that he has worked internationally in certain countries—if he is aware of anyone who he thinks would make a good Global Scot, I would really welcome his input on that. If he can send me his names to my office, we will follow up on that to get to the ambitious targets that we have set over the longer term. The expansion of the Global Scot network is a testament to Scotland's appeal and ambition on the world stage. In light of that, how will the Scottish Government fully capitalise on its plans to establish two new offices in Copenhagen and Warsaw, further expanding its existing network of European and international hubs? Our international presence creates domestic opportunities, broadens our horizons and ultimately benefits the people of Scotland. As the member indicates, we will be establishing two new Scottish Government offices in Copenhagen and Warsaw. Those will sit alongside the existing SDI presence in those countries and alongside the existing Global Scot networks in those countries. In the case of Poland, our trade envoy has been in place there for the last three years. It is a real opportunity for us to continue to expand Scotland's export and investment ambitions. Those investment hubs will be very much part and then to go part of Scotland's global footprint overseas and the work that we are doing with our Global Scots and others. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on Afghan refugee relocation resettlement, with reference to the different elements of the new Scottish strategy. The Scottish Government is committed to playing our part in welcoming and supporting people fleeing Afghanistan. We continue to urge the UK Government to increase the number of refugees it will accept and to provide more information and confirmation of a start date for the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme. As of 26 September, around 230 people in 61 families have arrived in Scotland across nine local authority areas under the relocation scheme for locally employed staff. In line with the key principle of the new Scots refugee integration strategy, local authorities are working to support their integration from day one of their arrival in Scotland. Partnership and collaboration are central to the new Scots approach, and the Scottish Government is working with the Home Office, with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Local Authorities and third sector and community organisations to provide people with the safety and security that they need to rebuild their lives. I thank the cabinet secretary for that response. We know that one key way to support asylum seekers and refugees to settle and become part of their new country is to give them access to work. We know, as we have already heard in this chamber today, that we need workers in Scotland. Many sectors are under immense staff and pressure. Many of us will have been contacted by employers who want to consider refugees for employment in sectors that are crying out for more staff. Can I ask the cabinet secretary what support we can make available to people resettled via the Afghan relocation and assistance policy to find employment, and what we can do to provide support for employers such as care homes in my region who want to support refugees into employment? Does he agree that people seeking asylum should also be given the right to work alongside refugees, unlike the UK Government, who, despite a promise made by the Prime Minister in 2019— Short questions and answers, please. Cabinet secretary. To review that policy, he has refused to do so. Cabinet secretary. Very briefly, I agree entirely with the sensible points that my colleague has made. The new Scots strategy recognises that integration is a long-term and multifaceted process. We work to ensure that people can access the support and services that they need as they settle in Scotland, including those related to health, education, language, employability and welfare rights. I will raise the specific questions about employment, training and employees who would wish to employ Afghans as a priority. Thank you, cabinet secretary. Two brief supplementaries, firstly, Bill Kidd. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. I thank the cabinet secretary for his elaboration on the new Scots integration strategy. With 2.6 million Afghan refugees and 3.5 million Afghan refugees internally displaced, would the cabinet secretary reiterate with myself and the First Minister that the UK Government's aim to reset a total of 20,000 Afghan refugees, including 5,000 in the first year, is entirely insufficient? Yes, I will. Although the announcement of a UK-Afghanistan resettlement scheme is welcome in principle, the commitment to 20,000 in the long term and just 5,000 in the first year is inadequate. We believe that a substantial increase in numbers being committed to is required if the UK Government is to meet its responsibilities. It is right that the new Afghan resettlement scheme will be in addition to the UK's existing global refugee resettlement commitment. Thank you, Presiding Officer. The cabinet secretary well knows that hundreds of thousands of Afghans are fleeing from persecution and over two decades of war. Scotland must play its part in helping to resettle them. Can I ask the Scottish Government what provision has it made to ensure councils have the funding to provide the new infrastructure to help to resettle the refugees to make the most of their new lives here? I commend the tone and constructive suggestions from the Labour Party on this question. He will know that the funding package is a matter for the Home Office and we have been pressing the Home Office and the UK Government to ensure that the funding package is fully in place. That is what we are working in collaboration with the Convention of Local Authorities in general and with specific local authorities who are making moves to try and accept the Afghan refugees. I am happy to work on his behalf and his party's behalf in pressing on the UK Government to deliver on their commitments and I would urge him to amplify the calls that he has made in the chamber today. To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to cultural organisations in Mid Scotland and Fife. The Scottish Government provides a range of support to cultural organisations in the Mid Scotland and Fife region, particularly in light of the pandemic. For example, organisations in Fife and Perth and Kinross have received more than £3 million through our performing arts venues relief fund and more than £770,000 through our cultural organisations and venues recovery fund. Full details of those funds are published by Creative Scotland. That funding has of course been vital in supporting cultural organisations and businesses throughout the pandemic. I thank the minister for her response. According to a recent report, the number of people using the eight open libraries in Perth and Kinross has fallen by two thirds over the most recent period, perhaps not surprising due to the issues with Covid. Can the minister tell us what more the Scottish Government might do to help to encourage people back to use libraries to support this important local resource and make it clear that they are safe? Can she reassure us that Perth and Kinross Council and other councils in the area will not see any reduction in funding due to a fall in the number of people using local libraries? I thank Murdo Fraser for that question. In response to his question, specifically targeted on libraries, the member will be aware that the Government takes this matter very seriously and recently introduced a libraries recovery fund to the tune of £1.25 million, which is being managed by the Scottish Libraries Information Commissioner. Slick will manage that fund, and one of the requirements with that fund is that it reaches those who need it most and that we get a geographical spread, which would of course include the member's region. Specifically on the member's question about Perth and Kinross Council, I think that local authorities have got a real key role to play here in terms of cultural provision, and I will be meeting with the culture conveners very soon. I hope and I am sure that Perth and Kinross will be part of those conversations as we move forward because we absolutely need our local authorities to be part of that cultural recovery. To ask the Scottish Government what role the Scotland on Tour fund will play in aiding the recovery of Scotland's arts sector. The pandemic has had significant personal and professional impacts on those working in the live music sector. We know that the sector will continue to face challenges even now that most parts of it can fully reopen. Musicians, bands, artists and venues will be able to apply to the Scotland on Tour fund, backed by £750,000 from the Scottish Government, to bring new and additional concerts to venues and festivals in Scotland this year. Scotland on Tour will enable artists to reach new audiences and communities, widening opportunities to perform throughout the country. I thank the minister for her answer. The Scottish Government's commitment to the touring fund within the first 100 days of the current administration is timely and extremely welcome. In the opinion of the Scottish Government, to what extent will the Scotland on Tour fund benefit all of Scotland's communities, including the Highlands and Islands, and not only urban centres? One of the key aims of the Scotland on Tour fund is to create new performance opportunities throughout the country, including the Highlands and Islands where the member represents. The organisation active events that are tasked with delivering the Scotland on Tour project are supported by a steering group, which includes representation from the industry, such as the Scottish Music Industry Association, the Touring Network, Creative Scotland, the End Reference Society and the Enterprise Agencies, which includes Highlands and Islands. I hope that that reassures the member that the voices of those within her region are being reflected in the direct development of the fund's eligibility criteria. We are committed to helping communities throughout Scotland to have greater access to cultural activities, including live music, and Scotland on Tour will help to support that ambition. I wonder if the minister would support the initiative by Alison McGovern MP, who is currently going to Europe to ask for support in terms of visas for the touring industry so that they can tour not just in Scotland but the rest of Europe as well. I thank the member for that question. I am not excited on the specifics of that programme, but if she would be able to share that with me, it would sound like something we in Scottish Government would be keen to support. She may be aware that the cabinet secretary and I have made repeated representations to the UK Government on this issue. It is a real challenge for the sector just now. I met with the previous culture minister, I think, in June prior to the summer recess, when it was, at the time, Caroline Dynard, and made that point to her directly. I am happy to work with the member on that, and it sounds as though we will share the same interests in this space. To ask the Scottish Government whether it has met or has any plans to meet the recently appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to discuss constitutional issues in relation to Scotland. Scottish Government is committed to constructive engagement with the UK Government on the basis of a partnership of equals and is making clear to UK ministers, including the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, that following the Scottish election it has an unarguable democratic mandate to offer the people of Scotland a choice about their constitutional future. I met and shared a platform with the outgoing Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the recent British Irish Association meeting in Oxford, and I hope to meet his successor soon. Would the cabinet secretary agree with me that, in light of the times article last week or during this week, we should encourage the Tories, despite instruction from their leadership, to continue to talk about the union and help the case for independence even further? I think that that is an entirely positive suggestion. I look forward to hearing those arguments from the Tory benches. In reading the article that my friend has highlighted, I think that the reasoning was because they shouldn't sound too needy was the advice that they were being given. Perhaps in striking a more consensual note, however, Presiding Officer, in seeking consensus, hopefully, as Democrats, we can all agree that in the recent Scottish Parliament elections that the parties that stood on a manifesto commitment that people should have a say on their future in a referendum won and the parties that opposed a referendum lost. As Democrats, hopefully, we can all agree that that was the outcome of the election, that is the mandate and that is indeed what will happen. To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the development of a national centre for music. The Royal High School Preservation Trust has put forward proposals to the City of Edinburgh Council for the restoration of the former Royal High School building as a world-class centre for music education and public performance for the benefits of the whole of Scotland. It would not be appropriate for Scottish ministers to intervene in advance of any decisions being taken by the City of Edinburgh Council as the current owners and the planning authority. However, as the member may know, I was employed at the Royal High School although not in the old building, but I am watching developments with interest, particularly given the historic role of the school in Scotland's proud history of education. I thank the minister for her answer. Given the sight of a proposal on the national centre for music, as she said, is within my region, can I ask the minister what funding, if any, is available to Edinburgh City Council and Councillors across Scotland if they want the scheme to go ahead and how else can they encourage the building to be brought back into public use? I thank the member for that question. I do not want to prejudge the outcome of what the City of Edinburgh Council will say on that matter, so if the member will understand, I am not able to give a specific comment on funding at this moment in time as no approach has been made from the council. However, I am aware of a letter from William Gray Muir, who is the chairman of the Royal High School Preservation Trust to the First Minister, and I would be happy to meet him once the outcome of the council's consideration is known. As the member may be aware, the Scottish Government is supportive of St Mary's music school already and has provided a budget of up to £1.6 million a year to support up to 55 pupils from all over Scotland. I am aware that the proposals that are drafted would include the potential to relocate St Mary's, and I am also aware that St Mary's school has already met education officials on the matter. I understand the closing date, as previously mentioned, for applications for the future use of the Royal High School's old building, which was on 3 September. As the member, as I have said, will understand, it will be for the council to decide when to announce the outcome of those applications. However, I look forward to meeting with the chairman of the Royal High School Preservation Trust after that time, and I am also happy to meet Mr Balfour on the matter if he would like to do so. We have a supplementary from Jenny Minto. As the minister has said, the National Centre of Music's plans are an exciting example of Scotland's celebration and appreciation of culture, and it is really encouraging to know that the Scottish Government recognises the importance of culture centres in local communities. Will the minister reiterate that the £1.25 million into Public Library's Covid Recovery Fund is another brilliant example of this appreciation in action in communities across Scotland? I thank the member for that question. Yes, I would agree, and I have referenced the Library Recovery Fund in response to Mr Fraser previously, but the Government does recognise the valuable role that libraries play in their communities and how popular they are. In 2019, there were 40 million visits to public libraries in Scotland more than to the Premier League and to cinemas combined. However, the fund that I spoke to previously will help more services to be restored in libraries, including reopening. It will also help libraries to continue to be at the heart of their communities and to support their communities in recovering from the pandemic. Thank you, minister, and that concludes the item portfolio questions. Presiding Officer, earlier today, my colleague Douglas Ross asked the First Minister about the specifics of a certain section of a vaccine certificate scheme that is still being consulted on. The response was as follows. I do not have the regulations in front of me right now. I am very happy to come back afterwards and go through every particular regulation and who precisely we have consulted. The First Minister made that offer as far as I am aware that she is not coming back to the chamber this afternoon to answer those questions. Can you please help me as a humble backbencher? How do I persuade the First Minister to come back and ask the questions that I have and other members have about this completely flawed scheme? Thank you, Mr Balfour. I think that, as you will understand, the scheduling of business is a matter for the bureau. I would certainly encourage Mr Balfour's business manager to raise that with the bureau at its next meeting. As I say, it is now time to move on to the next item of business, which is a statement from the cabinet secretary, Humza Yousaf, on the autumn and winter vaccine programme. I will allow a little bit of time for the front benches to change.