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The Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 2022 is a response to the impact of the cost crisis on those living in the rented sector. The Act introduced a temporary rent cap and a temporary moratorium on the enforcement of evictions, along with simplifying the process for claiming unlawful eviction damages and increasing the level of damages that can be awarded.

The Act was initially due to expire on 31 March 2023, however Scottish Ministers used the powers available to them to extend Part 1 for a further period of 6 months to 30 September 2023.

In addition to being time limited, the Scottish Government has also made clear it will retain and use the provisions within the Act only for as long as they are necessary and proportionate. As a result, where it has been possible to do so, provisions in the Act have been suspended or expired when they have fulfilled their purpose and the Scottish Government has examined available evidence and views and both supported a change in approach.

The ongoing cost crisis continues to place people across Scotland in a precarious economic position. Renters, in particular, have lower household incomes, higher levels of poverty and are more vulnerable to economic shocks. Over the period from 2018-2020, 63% of social rented households and 40% of private rented households did not have enough savings to cover even a month of income at the poverty line, compared to 24% of households buying with a mortgage and 9% of households owning outright. Thus rented sector households entered the cost of living crisis in a more vulnerable position than owner occupiers.

In carefully considering this wider economic context, the Scottish Government have decided that it is necessary and proportionate for Part 1 of the Act to be extended for a further, and final, 6 month period to 31 March 2024.

Subject to approval by Parliament, regulations have been laid today that would mean:

• Most in-tenancy private rent increases would continue to be capped at 3%;
• Alternatively, private landlords could apply for increases of up to 6% to help cover certain increases in costs in a specified time period where these costs can be evidenced;
• Enforcement of evictions would continue to be paused for six months for most tenants, except in a number of specified circumstances; and
• Increased damages for unlawful evictions of up to 36 months’ worth of rent would continue to be applicable.

A Statement of Reasons has been published alongside these regulations, setting out the evidence why the Scottish Government believes it is necessary and proportionate to extend Part 1 of the Act beyond 30 September 2023.

Part 1 of the Act can only be extended in its entirety and not on a provision by provision basis. Any provisions that should not be extended therefore need to be expired or suspended through separate regulations. In addition, throughout the proposed six month extension period, if provisions are deemed to no longer be necessary during that time then they must be suspended or expired early. A suspended provision could subsequently be revived if this was considered necessary and proportionate in connection with the cost of living.

Therefore, proposing that Part 1 of the Act be extended at this time does not guarantee that all provisions covered by the extension would remain in place until 31 March 2024, and we will continue to review – and report on - whether the provisions remain necessary and proportionate in connection with the cost of living.

The Scottish Government places great importance on swimming pools. They are crucial to the wellbeing of all our country and most importantly, for our children and young people to be healthy and active.

The financial package announced by the UK Government to support swimming pools in England has resulted in consequentials being added to the overall Scottish block.

We will continue to work with sportscotland, Scottish Swimming and local government partners to consider what additional support can be provided to swimming pools and the wider sport and leisure sector in Scotland.

This information is not held centrally and is a matter for the Care Inspectorate (CI).

The CI does not hold data in relation to care homes that have closed, however information on cancelled services is publicly available on the CI website: https://www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/publications-statistics/93-public/datastore

These are services who have had their registration cancelled and this does not necessarily mean closure. Some services will have cancelled their registration but a new legal entity may have continued the provision of the service.

The Scottish Government aims to ensure that the mental, social and physical needs of all those diagnosed with cancer are considered equal.

In 2022 the Cancer Prehabilitation Implementation Steering Group oversaw the publication of the Psychological Therapies and Support Framework for People Affected by Cancer .

The Framework not only sets out general principles for high quality holistic care, but also incorporates a number of tools that will aid implementation across Scotland. The Framework highlights the four levels of psychological care and support which are supported through expert evidence, and presents two models for implementation that are applicable across sectors, including health, care and the third-sector.

I also refer the member to the question S6W-17800 answered on 18 May 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

We published the data on 23 March 2023 here:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/low-carbon-heating-in-domestic-buildings-technical-feasibility-archetype-appendix/

The Hydrogen Innovation Scheme received a total of 74 applications with 32 successful projects offered grant funding.

Unsuccessful applicants to the scheme were directed to potential alternative sources of assistance, including available business grants and other funding calls and the SME Loan and Cashback Scheme which provides interest free loans (from £1,000 up to £100,000) to small and medium sized Scotland based businesses.

The successful Hydrogen Innovation Scheme applicants were informed throughout April and May 2023. All grants are paid in arrears, and will be awarded on successful completion of key project milestones.

Application guidance was made available to all applicants to the Hydrogen Innovation Scheme via the Scottish Government’s Website. In partnership with Energy Technology Partnership and the Enterprise Agencies, the Scottish Government hosted a webinar on 5 July 2022 to provide further guidance to prospective applicants and to direct them to additional sources of support. All applicants to the scheme were able to seek additional support from Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, South of Scotland Enterprise and/or the Energy Technology Partnership.

Any healthcare products being used by NHS Scotland require the undertaking of due diligence to ensure the safety of everyone concerned. This involves seeking clinical advice and undertaking a full health technology assessment (HTA).

In the first instance, all health technologies must be registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) before being placed on the market.

Following that, we refer enquiries around health technologies to the Scottish Health Technologies Group (SHTG), who are part of Healthcare Improvement Scotland. SHTG undertake HTAs, providing evidence support and advice on the use of new and existing health technologies. This includes analysing the benefits, costs, ease of implementation as well as considering any unintended clinical consequences which may arise.

It is ultimately for the 14 Territorial Health Boards across Scotland to decide whether to procure and apply this intervention as part of their treatment for patients. Health Boards receive support from Healthcare Improvement Scotland and SHTG in making such decisions.

The SHTG has not provided advice on the use of Trucheck to date.

The Managed Service Network for Children and Young People with Cancer (MSN CYPC), has not received any additional funding from Scottish Government to carry out a robust workforce review and mapping exercise of posts across the network. The exercise is being completed with support from the Scottish Cancer Network, using existing resources.