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The emergency Cost of Living (Tenant Protection)(Scotland) Act 2022 placed a temporary pause on the enforcement of evictions to help to reduce the negative impacts on the health and wellbeing of tenants caused by being evicted and/or being made homeless during the cost crisis. However, the Act allows the enforcement of eviction orders to proceed in limited circumstances. This includes cases of anti-social behaviour and criminality, to protect other tenants and the local community, cases of abandonment, to avoid empty properties, and to support landlords who find themselves in financial hardship or facing substantial rent arrears.

Ongoing reporting on the Act shows there has been a limited impact on the number of private landlords seeking to evict a tenant and there is no suggestion that the overall rate of evictions will rise following the expiry of Part 1 of the Act.

Prior to the introduction of the Act, private tenants in Scotland already benefitted from some of the strongest protections in the UK. This includes the strict legal processes that private landlords and their agents must follow to evict a tenant – failure to do so is a criminal offence, and tenants can assert their rights without fear of eviction.

It is vitally important that tenants are made aware of the existing rights afforded to them by the Private Residential Tenancy. Therefore, a key part of our work in advance of the emergency Act coming to an end, will be to raise awareness of those rights with private tenants as we support a transition away from the emergency measures.

As announced on the 19 December 2023 by the Deputy First Minister, Scotland’s key environmental agencies will all benefit from uplifts in resource funding in 2024-25. This additional funding recognises the increasing role they play in tackling the climate and biodiversity crises and will support continued activity as we strive to meet stretching targets for Scotland.

More information on the budget can be found here: Scottish Budget: 2024 to 2025 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The data set available which can be used to calculate occupancy levels for Scottish Government (SG) core buildings has been developed into a table format for years 2020 - 2024. This information can be obtained from The Parliaments Information Centre Bib number 64841.

The percentages represent the number of attendees on the first Tuesday of each month against the workstation spaces available within that building. Data is no longer available for 2019 or before and is only available for part of 2020 due to limitations on information retention periods.

During 2023 SG committed to a flexible hybrid working model for its workforce, enabling staff to work from a range of settings. Managers have flexibility to work with their teams to determine a model that ensures business needs are met. The shift to hybrid working is being built into future estate planning and our Estate Strategy. In light of the changing expectations the SG core estate is under review with all opportunities to right-size considered which can both reduce SG costs and contribute to the wider Public Service Reform agenda. Estate Planning for the entire portfolio continues in line with guidance in the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM).

Over the last 12 months SG have closed 3 leased buildings in Edinburgh and 1 in Glasgow with staff and operations relocated to existing buildings all opportunities for rationalisation and sharing are utilised in line with the SPFM. A decision to close 4 Atlantic Quay has also been taken with staff being relocated to 5 Atlantic Quay in March 2024 to reflect the changes in working patterns and improve building efficiencies.

A detailed review of the Edinburgh estate will be completed during 2024 to develop a recommended approach for maximising the use of the buildings while aligning with the Single Scottish Estate Programme.

The Scottish Government delegated the management of Holyrood Park to Historic Environment Scotland as a Property in Care. When considering potential changes to any Property in Care, Historic Environment Scotland ensures that the local community, as well as the relevant experts, are consulted. The Holyrood Park public consultation ran from 26 September to 19 December 2023, and once the results are analysed this will inform the development of any proposals for change. Health and safety remains paramount and I will continue regular engagement with Historic Environment Scotland regarding the effective management of the Properties in Care.

The Scottish Government will publish a Framework that effectively tackles and challenges men’s demand for prostitution, and to support those with experience of it, early this year. The Framework takes a holistic approach, recognising the links to wider forms of commercial sexual exploitation and violence against women and girls - aligning with the refresh of our Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy and Equally Safe.

In parallel, and to support this approach, the Framework’s implementation will be supported by the creation of a new multi-agency stakeholder group on Commercial Sexual Exploitation. More details will be made available once the group has been established.

NHS Grampian and Aberdeen City HSCP are responsible for the delivery of primary medical services in Aberdeen.

The Scottish Government recently published the General Practice Access Principles report. This report sets out a clear framework for the core principles of how GP services should be delivered – equitably, sensitively, reasonably and appropriately, making the most effective use of resources and systems currently available.

The principles are intended to assist practices in their ongoing considerations of how to best meet those needs in differing and sometimes difficult circumstances. The Scottish Government will continue to work together with all relevant partners to implement these principles.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold this information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water evaluates long-term supply and demand positions for water resources on a water supply zone basis, looking over a 25 year period and taking into account growth, population change and climate change effects. Further to this, Scottish Water is currently developing options appraisals for resolving deficits to be considered as part of the development of the next investment planning cycle
‎ 2027-33. Options that will be considered are demand reduction, connections to other supply zones, and source and treatment augmentations. The package of solutions for each zone will be specific to their circumstances.

As an example, the Glasgow Resilience Scheme is costing some £120million. This is providing greater resilience of water supplies for a million customers across Ayrshire and Glasgow by allowing water to be moved between catchments.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold this information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water is investing around £110m every year in the operating and capital costs of managing leakage, repairing bursts and rehabilitating water networks. With the capital programme now around £1bn per annum (including responsive repair and refurbishment expenditure) this is equivalent to 8%-10% of capital expenditure.

Results from the Health and Care Experience Survey 2023-24 will be published in May 2024.

NHS Grampian and Aberdeen City HSCP are responsible for the delivery of primary medical services in Aberdeen.

Once the rent cap, under Part 1 of the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 2022, is expired rent increases which may be proposed by landlords will proceed under the framework set out in the 2016 Act. Where tenants consider the proposed increase to be unreasonable, the emergency Act provides Scottish Ministers with the ability to temporarily modify how rent increases referred by a tenant are adjudicated. Any proposed modification would be subject to the approval of the Scottish Parliament, and the intention of any changes to the adjudication process would be to smooth the transition out of the rent cap and protect tenants from steep rent increases.

It is proposed that, when the emergency rent cap is removed, the rent adjudication process would be amended to require a rent adjudication determination to be based on the lowest of three comparators:

1. open market rent;

2. the new rent proposed by the landlord; and

3. a maximum ‘reasonable’ increase for that tenancy, to be defined by reference to a new ‘taper’ that supports a transition away from the rent cap

Application of such an approach means that market rents would continue to be taken account of in rent adjudication whilst allowing for moderation where the move back to current market rent in a single rent increase would be a significant increase for a tenant.

We are currently consulting with stakeholders on the proposed approach to modifying the rent adjudication process.