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East Lothian is one of the fastest-growing areas in Scotland, along with the broader south-east Scotland region. Extensive economic and housing opportunities are possible in the region, as is highlighted in the “Strategic Sites Programme October 2024”, which was published by the Edinburgh and south-east Scotland city region deal team. How can the Scottish Government engage with the local authorities in the area in relation to the medium-term financial strategy to maximise opportunities?

The minister highlighted that Scotland has higher economic growth than the rest of the UK. Can he outline areas of expenditure in the outturn for 2024-25 that have helped to create that competitive economic advantage for the Scottish economy?

I will not—I have only four minutes.

The Scottish Government values the role of the defence sector in Scotland, the many jobs that it supports and sustains, and the value that it adds to the Scottish economy. Public money that Scottish enterprise agencies use is focused on supporting companies that are wholly or partially involved in defence activities with skills development and diversification. That ensures that Scotland continues to support and secure jobs in the defence, aerospace and shipbuilding sectors and the work that they do.

I will move on to some of the specifics of the debate. On the specifics of the motion, Scottish Enterprise considered that the project that it had been discussing with Rolls-Royce in partnership with the Malin Group for work on an attack submarine was unfortunately ineligible for potential funding. Scottish Enterprise did not receive a formal application for funding from Malin.

The Scottish Government provides business support via enterprise agencies to companies that operate in defence markets. Since the Scottish Government came to office, £45 million-worth of support has been allocated through enterprise agencies to defence companies or companies that are partially involved in defence activities. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of aerospace, defence and the shipbuilding sectors to Scotland’s economy and is committed to ensuring that Scotland is the home of manufacturing and innovation. Scottish ministers continue to engage with industries across the country as part of that work, including through our support for defence markets, diversification into civilian markets, training support and job creation.

The defence sector not only is critical to our national security but is a strategic driver of Scotland’s future workforce. As Gordon MacDonald mentioned, the Scottish Government is also investing up to £2 million in developing engineering skills in the Glasgow city region, working with the Clyde maritime cluster.

In conclusion, we will hear—we have heard already today—people say that the Scottish Government does not support the defence sector. As I have outlined in my short speech, the Scottish Government has funded and will continue to fund the defence sector in Scotland. The proposal from Rolls-Royce and the Malin Group for work on an attack submarine was, unfortunately, ineligible for the potential funding. The Scottish Government has a long-standing policy of not providing funding for munitions—the decision that was made by Scottish Enterprise on the matter demonstrated that.

This debate is taking place at a time of heightened tensions in many parts of the world. My thoughts are with those people who are suffering from the many wars and conflicts that are raging at the moment. Too many innocent people are being killed. As a Parliament, we have the responsibility not to further inflame conflicts by funding the manufacturers of munitions—indeed, the Scottish Government and its agencies have a long-standing policy that public money should not support the manufacturers of munitions.

The Scottish Government has produced robust guidance for its executive agencies and public bodies on how they should undertake due diligence on businesses before establishing an investment relationship. I will touch on that in a second.

Scottish Enterprise has been clear that its human rights due diligence checks are regularly reviewed and updated in line with its most recent guidance. I am aware of the review that is under way, which must be robust and as extensive as possible.

In the chamber last night, we discussed the horrors of the current situation in Gaza, where 55,000 Palestinians have been killed by the barbarism of the Israeli regime. Israel has had help with weapons and munitions from the UK and the US. That must stop. We must be unequivocal about this: the UK Government must stop supplying arms to Israel. In Scotland, we must ensure that no Scottish Enterprise funding finds its way to supporting companies that provide munitions to Israel.

For a number of years, social care recruitment has been a challenge in the east of East Lothian—in particular, for the rural villages near Dunbar, Haddington and North Berwick. To build on care at home, what strategies will be in place to address the issue of the social care worker shortage in rural areas and villages such as Innerwick, Gifford and Gullane, in my constituency?

Mr Griffin will be aware of the estimated number of buildings that require various levels of remediation. That information was published just last week—an estimated 1,260 to 1,450 of the residential buildings in Scotland that are 11m or more in height might require work to alleviate external wall system fire risk. Those are estimates and do not represent a list of specific buildings that might or do not need work. The numbers are based on our current best estimates and the UK systems of methodology. I am happy to engage with Mr Griffin further on that point.

When we talk about cladding—Willie Rennie will know about this—one of the most important points is to get the single building assessments done and in place as soon as possible. We worked very closely with the development sector on that point, and that work was done collaboratively. The greater our ability to get the SBAs done, the quicker we can get the buildings remediated. The open call that I have talked about and the work that is taking place with local authorities and RSLs will see that pace increase.

I reiterate that it is not possible to compare Scotland with the rest of the UK. We needed the cladding bill to introduce some of the powers that were needed, and the bill was passed.

With regard to the actions that we have taken, I mentioned the single open call and the work that we have been doing with local authorities and RSLs on that. We are also working with the social housing sector on the remediation of buildings for which it has responsibility.

I have talked before about being disappointed about the previous pace and breadth of progress, but, as I said, with the single open call and the work that we are doing, the pace of action is now increasing.

The Scottish Government has established a comprehensive cladding remediation system. Since the essential Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Act 2024 came into effect earlier this year, we have launched a £10 million scheme to support owners with building assessment. All buildings that were in the pilot programme—

My card is in. Is that any better?

I will start again, Presiding Officer.

The Scottish Government has established a comprehensive cladding remediation system. Since the essential Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Act 2024 came into effect earlier this year, we have launched a £10 million scheme to support owners with building assessment. All buildings that were in the pilot programme have had an initial review. Many do not require further action, and all others are either undergoing a statutory assessment, will be assessed by their developer or will have an assessment funded by us.

We have asked owners of social housing to confirm any buildings that are at risk and we will seek assurance that action is being taken. Where necessary, they can apply for funding to support assessment. The building safety levy, once it is enacted, will provide an important funding stream as we continue to mitigate fire safety risks.