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The Scottish Government collects information on the use of temporary accommodation (associated with homelessness applications). The HL2 data collection provides aggregate snapshot data on the number of households in temporary accommodation at the end of each quarter.

However, the Scottish Government does not collect data on the availability of temporary accommodation or stock in each local authority over and above what is in use. It is for local authorities to have an understanding of their stock, and that of their partners, which enables them to determine what could potentially be used as temporary accommodation when required.

The HL2 data is available for all local authorities from 2002 to 2021. Table 26 of the main tables associated with the most recent Homelessness in Scotland annual publication provides data for the number of households in temporary accommodation as at 31 March, by local authority, which will be a very close proxy for households in temporary accommodation on 29 March.

The bi-annual publication Homelessness in Scotland: update to 30 September 2021 provides additional quarterly figures from 31 st March 2019 to 30 September 2021 – Table 14 of the associated tables. This is the latest data available.

Data up to 31 March 2022 will be published on the homelessness statistics webpage in Summer 2022, although the publication date is not yet known.

Some premises listed in Use Class 7 (of the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997) are exempt from short-term let licensing legislation. Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2022 (the “Licensing Order”) sets out excluded accommodation. Class 7 premises that are exempt are:

• a hotel, which has planning permission granted for use as a hotel
• a hostel

In addition, the following exemption will also be relevant to some Use Class 7 premises (including hotels and guest houses):

• premises in respect of which a premises licence within the meaning of section 17 of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 has effect and where the provision of accommodation is an activity listed in the operating plan as defined in section 20(4) of the 2005 Act

Guest houses were originally listed as excluded accommodation in a previous version of the Licensing Order laid in December 2020. However, in response to feedback from our stakeholder working group we subsequently removed guest houses from the list of excluded accommodation and undertook further public consultation on this in June 2021. As guest houses can be variants of home sharing, they should not be automatically excluded. Further information is set out in the 2021 consultation paper (item 1 in table 2 at page 12): Short term lets - draft licensing order and business and regulatory impact assessment (BRIA): consultation - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Unless otherwise excluded by any of the criteria set out in Schedule 1 of the Licensing Order, use class 7 premises are therefore within scope of the definition of a short-term let in the Order laid in November 2021 and approved by the Scottish Parliament in January 2022.

It is an existing criminal offence to knowingly make a false statutory declaration and the Bill creates a new offence of knowingly making a false application for legal gender recognition. The maximum penalty for these offences is imprisonment for up to 2 years or an unlimited fine, or both.

There is provision in the Bill for a person with an interest in a Gender Recognition Certificate, such as the Registrar General to make an application to the Sheriff for revocation of a GRC on the grounds that it was fraudulently obtained. For example, the Registrar General may receive information that would have led to the refusal of the application or a person may make it known they have submitted a false application.

As with any criminal offence, it would be a matter for the police, the procurator fiscal and the courts to demonstrate and determine where an offence has been committed.

On April the 1st, ScotRail passenger services were successfully brought into public ownership. This move now offers us the opportunity to take the right actions to make rail travel more sustainable, affordable and accessible for the people of Scotland.

Affordable rail travel, including a consideration of peak rail fares, will be considered by the Fair Fares review. This review will seek to consider the affordability of public transport across the network, whilst also considering how journeys can be better connected through integrated ticketing, for example. In the context of the cost of living crisis it is absolutely essential that all Governments consider how to support an affordable public transport network.

In October 2021 I launched the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults, providing an initial £15 million to support small scale, community mental health and wellbeing activities. In light of the very positive response to the Fund, and the number of high quality bids received, in February I provided an additional £6 million for this work in financial year 2021-22.

Since the launch of the Fund, the Scottish Government has worked with the 32 Third Sector Interface organisations across Scotland to support hundreds of grass roots, community groups to deliver programmes for adults which tackle priority issues such as suicide prevention, social isolation and loneliness.

Projects are being funded across the whole of Scotland, supporting activities involving sport, nature, the arts and community cafes. There is a clear focus on people who are more vulnerable and in need, including those facing social isolation, refugees, the LGBTQ+ community, and carers.

Officials are currently collating learning from year one of the Fund, which will be used to inform a further £15 million investment in the coming year.

There are a number of current initiatives funded by Scottish Government aimed at providing support to industry to upskill their workforce and gain the necessary qualifications to effectively install/ maintain low carbon heating systems.

Current initiatives include the National Transition Training Fund (NTTF); The Flexible Workforce Development Fund (FWDF); and, the Heat Pump Skills Grant and MCS Certification Fund.

NTTF was established as a reactive response to Covid-19’s immediate impact on the labour market. The fund offers industry-recognised qualifications and training in growing employment sectors. Individuals can apply direct for training opportunities, while employers are encouraged to apply on behalf of their team. We have provided over £1.3m through the NTTF for energy efficiency and zero emissions heating retrofit skills. This includes a Low Carbon Learning Programme delivered by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre which provides free training access for tradespeople to increase their skills in retrofit and Passivehaus construction methods, as well as funding through the Energy Skills Partnership to support heat pump training in Scottish Colleges.

FWDF is available to employers to address priority skills gaps in their organisation. The fund provides funding to UK Apprenticeship Levy-payers and SMEs in Scotland which they can use to access flexible workforce development training opportunities. Training programmes can be delivered in partnership with their local college, The Open University in Scotland or an independent training provider.

The Heat Pump Skills Grant and MCS Certification Fund is offered to assist Scottish SMEs installing heat pumps in achieving MCS certification for the first time. This funding is for installers who are not currently MCS certified for heat pumps and who want to become MCS certified for any heat pump technology (air, water, or ground source).

A broad range of different skills are needed to support the heat in buildings transition, however we are aware that the installer skills for zero emissions heating and energy efficiency represent the largest gap.

Unlocking investment in the supply chain must start with clear demand for its products and services. Our investment of at least £1.8 billion, as outlined in the Heat in Buildings Strategy, will strengthen demand and support an increase in jobs and skilled workers.

We have provided over £1.3m through our National Transition Training Fund for energy efficiency and zero emissions heating retrofit skills. This includes a Low Carbon Learning Programme delivered by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre which provides free training access for tradespeople to increase their skills in retrofit and Passivehaus construction methods, as well as funding through the Energy Skills Partnership to support heat pump training in Scottish Colleges.

The Flexible Workforce Development Fund provides employers with access to a range of heat and energy efficiency courses and is open both to UK Apprenticeship Levy paying employers and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Scotland.

We have invested in heat pump training equipment for Scottish colleges with new capacity for training provision due to come online later this year.

Finally, Scottish Government officials and Skills Development Scotland are collaborating with the industry under the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan to define new pathways, and work is underway to develop new, targeted financial support for skills development in this sector.