which players currently on the roster would be best suited to make the transition from corner to safety. Why Justice Hill's spot on this team as the number four running back isn't guaranteed. Did the Ravens just forget bringing in the veteran, forget bringing up one of the young guys and just make the transition of Jimmy Smith from corner to safety full time? These and many, many more questions on this episode of NFL Questions from subscribers. You know just what I mean. You too, Team Keep It Clean. You too, Team Keep It Clean. What's going on in St. Graven here with another video and another episode of NFL Questions from subscribers. What Questions from subscribers is a series where you can ask me any NFL question you want to based off of any NFL team and we answer in a video just like this. Now, if you wanna be part of NFL Questions from subscribers, just send me an email at teamkeepitclean at gmail.com and we'll answer your question in a video just like this. If you ever wanna send something to Team Keep It Clean, the PO box is down below in the description. If you ever wanna support the channel in any way, that information is down below in the description. I love y'all, I appreciate y'all. We got plenty of questions, the season is almost here. We were right there. We're so close. Let's get into these questions. First question came from my boy Gary A. He said, A. and Graven, how you doing? Doing good. He said, help the family is doing well. They doing good too. He said, now until my question, remember when I told you Lamar is never credited with wins by the media, but he's blamed for losses. Colin Coward, the biggest flip-flopper, claims that Lamar is the Giannis of the NBA. Both of them are dangerous with a lead and aren't so with it. I think he meant without it. But he then claims Steph Curry and Russell Wilson are more dangerous with a lead and trailing. The Steph Curry, who blew a 3-1 lead, has zero finals MVP's and is a notorious front runner. And Russell Wilson, the guy who has become, the guy who has become more mistake-prone and has a losing record in the playoffs when his defense gives up more than 20 points and also divided his locker room when the Seahawks made a political statement when they gave him the ball on a one-yard line rather than hand it off to Beast Mode. How are they going to say Lamar isn't clutch when he almost put off an insane comeback in the same game that the Chargers gave the blueprint, gave up the blueprint to stop him? I know this might sound crazy, but I think we might purposely go down 14 points in the second half to prove a point. The same way Lamar threw five touchdowns in the season open to prove he's not bad for a running back. Also, how are they going to move the goal post when he wins his first playoff game next season? Anyways, take care and remember to keep it clean. So, we starting off with a banger. So, whoa, this was a lot, man. This was a lot. The battle of Lamar trailing.  And, I mean, it's, what team, what team's goal is to play from behind? What team's strategy is to be like, you know what? Let's go down 20 points, then let's turn it on, fellas. Let's do that. So, I know a lot of people say, oh, Ravens, they not built to play from behind. They can't come back. I mean, they came from behind and they did it in the Browns game, they did it in the 49ers game. Cause first is that, then they say, oh, well, when he's down by more than one score, you can't come back. And that's just one thing that a lot of the media is running with right now. You can't play from behind. And the Ravens do, they haven't had that where they, I mean, they almost did it in the Chiefs game. They ended up, they were down by like, I think 20 at one point, maybe 17, something like that. In the Chiefs game last year, then they ended up losing by five, I believe. What else? What other games were they just down big? And they came back and made it close. Not the Browns game, certainly not the, the first Browns game. In the Titans game, oh boy. It's like he was out there all by himself almost. But anyway, that is what they have to hold on to right now because not that the Ravens can't come from behind, but when they've been down by multiple scores recently, they haven't been able to close it off. They haven't been able to seal the deal. So right now that's what, and of course the 0-2 in the playoffs, but that's right now what they have to hold on to because that's part of the discredit Lamar training. And I mean, hey, that's stuff that he's got to get through, right? He's got to end up coming from behind for, I mean, because some people just, they'll continue to look for things with Lamar. And again, not to say that he doesn't deserve criticism because every quarterback does. But you know with Lamar, a lot of people, they do a little extra criticizing and they throw a little extra monkey wrench in there. And then they'll have one thing that's working until Lamar shuts that down and proves it wrong. And then they'll go, oh, you know what, I got this. I got this in my back pocket. That's also what Lamar needs to work on. And then if he does that, if he proves that wrong too, then they be like, oh, you know what, I got something under my bed that I've been holding on to waiting. Oh yeah, Lamar needs to fix this. So it's always gonna be something. And that's fine. It's always gonna be something. It just is what it is. That's it. It is what it is.  And somebody in a podcast, shout out to my guy Jay Ham. He said, the reality of the whole thing is Lamar Jackson as a starting quarterback has lost three games, three regular season games and two playoff games, three. And he's won, I forgot how many he's won, but the fact that he's lost three games and two playoff games, it's amazing. Seriously, it's amazing. And the fact that this dude is only gonna be going into his second year as a full-time starter. This is his third season. His third, oh, sky's the limit, man. That's it. The question came from my guy Manuel. He said, what's up in Graven? Shout out for Mexico. Hope everything is well. Oh yeah. I'm bringing up a definition for all the team keep it clean. Leadership, the action of leading a group of people or an organization. Since I've been watching the videos or training camp in the interviews, one constant comes to mind when the players are asked about Lamar Jackson. Leadership and humbleness. To this day, I've never seen so many guys have that kind of support for a very young player like Lamar and not just learn from him but grow with him. If this is any indication that this team has a very strong locker room bond, then it is obvious A, B, or there's or any player we bring will feel like home and help them achieve their goal of winning the Super Bowl. Now, down to the question. If we go 19-0, winning the Super Bowl this year, do you see any doubt or still questioning Lamar's abilities or will this put an end to those doubts? If not, does he have to win seven Super Bowls to silence him, stay safe and healthy and caught a just caught a deep throw over your head besides your offensive P.I. Hello, Will. I appreciate it. Like we always say, his doubters will never be silenced, ever. Ever, not at them. They won't be. There's always gonna be something. And again, yeah, Ravens could go 19-0. They could win everything. They could win every game, but there will always be something. Always. It's not going away. And because he has a strong team. Oh, it was coaching. Oh, it was the running game. Oh, it was the defense. It's always gonna be something. Somebody's gonna find something to where they discredit him. And even if he wins seven Super Bowls, like you said, man, it'll still always be something there. Next question came from Rizzy. You said, what's up in Raven? Hope all is well. Love the videos, especially the ones in the car when you use the headphones. Ooh, that's throwback, man. That's crazy. That was two years ago, yo. That's, I appreciate you all, man. He said, anyway, do you think the Ravens brought in Dez Bryant just to light a little fire up under Miles Boykin so they could get the best out of him? Oh yeah, that's exactly what I said too. That's exactly what I said too. I think that's all that was, man. I never for once thought they were signing Dez Bryant at all. They again, like I always say that could change, but it certainly hasn't. So that's all I think it was, man. Just to put Miles Boykin not necessarily on notice, but let him know like, hey, tighten up my friend. Next question came from a boy, Nathan G. He said, I got a question I want to send about the hiring of David Cully, and that has been underrated. Think about it. Since hiring him, the type of receiver we've targeted has changed tremendously. Hmm. So he was hired, I believe, what, two years ago? And the Ravens, I don't know if the type of receiver, well, I mean, they've gone younger. But I don't have the type of receiver really changed because they've been getting more speed and whatnot, but I think that went with the quarterback. That went with the quarterback because Lamar's, he's much different from Joe Flacco and just what they bring to the table. So, and I think the Ravens just really wanted to get a faster offense, a more high-flying offense, a more offense that got that quick strike ability, even though Ravens, they did some long drives last year, but I just think they wanted the track team, man. So I think it was not even just necessarily David Cully, but Lamar Jackson and just the whole offense changing all together. Next question came from a boy, Ghetto Vegan. He said, Ravens fans, have you ever thought of this? Having Dez Bryant at the one, Boykin at the two and Hollywood Brown at the slide in certain situations or Boykin at one and Dez at two and Hollywood in the slot in some formations. Of course, when we go for wide, have both Snead and Brown in the slot. Well, I never thought of that because I ain't think Dez is gonna be here. But if he was here, they could do that, have those big body wide receivers on the outside and Hollywood in the slot. Like Hollywood, I expect him to be in the slot sometimes this year too. He is definitely gonna be an outside receiver, but I expect them to move him around, man. They should move him around, just use their speed to his advantage and just try to create mismatches too. That's one thing that I really hope that the Ravens do this year is utilize their weapons on offense to try to create mismatches for opposing defenses. Really, really do that because that could go such a long way. Wow, my voice, when I said such a sound like I hit puberty or something, let me run that back. Because that could go such a long way. There we go. Next question came from my boy, Johnny M. He said, hey, what's up? I watch your videos on YouTube. Appreciate it, man. He said, I was just wondering if you think Justice Hill could potentially become a third down Tariq Cohen type of running back. Cause I know he has a speed and everything, but Ravens has so many backs. I hope he steps up in that way and gets playing time. Same with JK and Gus, they gotta get that bowl. So well, see, then that's the thing though. See, you just ask if Justice Hill could become a third down Tariq Cohen type of back and that you hope he steps up in that way and gets playing time, but then he says, same with JK and Gus. That's the thing, they do have these running backs. They got four running backs right now and initially going into this off season, I thought Gus was a goner for sure because of the way the draft went and just how last season went, especially in the playoff game, it mattered the most. I just thought Gus was a goner. And it still, of course, is a possibility, especially with other running backs around the league getting injured. But now, ever since they came out with the opt-out thing, that's when I started to think, oh, well, maybe he could actually stay because it's a lot of guys opting out and whatnot. And then with the possibility of injuries due to not having a proper off season, that can increase the risk of injuries because we've been seeing a bunch of people get hurt. I mean, we see it every year, but this year is no different. And it could in fact be worse. Hopefully it doesn't get any worse than what it is now, but you almost expect it to, man. So, I mean, everybody just gotta put in their part, man.  That's really hard. Like extremely hard. Hey, can you keep four running backs happy? No. I mean, they all got their little things they could do here and there. Somebody gonna do special teams, somebody gonna do first down, second down, third down, passing game, run block, all that stuff. I mean, they gonna have different roles and whatnot, goal line, but as long as they all focused on the team goal, all focused on winning together, then they should be all right. But it is kind of tough though, man, to keep all of them happy. And he said, another question is, I don't know why the Ravens didn't consider signing Tavon Austin. I feel like he would have been great for the return game and offense. I heard this from B-more too and went the dumb ball high. In my opinion, he would have been a great fit. Oh yeah, a little welcome home party for Tavon Austin, man. But yeah, he signed with the 49ers and Kyle Shanahan is gonna use him well, except when it comes to the silver bowl if they got there. But he's gonna use him well. And Ravens could have used him too. They could have used him in the passing game. They could have used, did some like screens with him and stuff. There's some jet sweeps in with him and whatnot. Had him in the return game.  Next question came from my guy Raven Pride. He said, and Raven, what's up my brother? Hope everything is well. And I know you're excited. That car to start in school. No, I wasn't. No, I just, I don't like waking up early. I don't like it at all, man. I was telling my wife, I told my mom the same thing too. I said, we should have signed him up for school on the West Coast. So when it's 8 a.m. over there, it's 11 over here. So I got time just to like get up and relax. But now like I got to get up at 7 30 in the morning. Oh man, that's not me at all, man. I ain't waiting to get up early in the morning, but now I have to. Like I ain't got no choice, I have to. So no, I was excited for that at all, man. But he's doing good though, man. He's doing really good, man. And he's adjusted, he had to adjust too. Cause we were used to sleeping in. Hey, getting up like 9 30, something like that. Not sleeping in too late, but now that's all gone. I miss it. You see my question or my response to the Ravens letting Earl go was basically a veteran majority vote. I say this because it took a strong locker room of guys to say enough is enough. In this organization, one player isn't bigger than the entire team. And this is a well-taught lesson to all teams and especially the players who come to this team. So I say, well-handled by the Ravens. Yeah, hey. Yeah.  And hey, they were willing to risk losing a lot of money. They were willing to risk it being a very big salary cap implications, negatively too. So for them to still cut Earl Thomas with all that money on the line, that says a lot. Next question came from a boy, Jarvis Fowler. He said, if, oh well, this was obviously before. And he said, if we cut Earl Thomas, who replaces him, do we change someone's position, sign a free agent, make a trade or throw a geno stone or Joker at free safety? Or maybe we bring back Ed Reid. So I mean, Ravens have been answering that question so far. They've been saying, hey, it's Joker's time. It's the Sean Elliott's time. I do still think they're gonna bring in a veteran. Who that veteran is. There's been a lot of talk, a lot of rumors about it possibly being Tony Jefferson. We'll see what happens with that. Brandon Carr is still out there. He could play some corner, some safety. I don't know if he's still trying to play. He hasn't retired yet, but who knows what he's trying to do? Logan Ryan is out there, but I don't think they're gonna even look at him. I don't think they're gonna even entertain that. Of course you got Geno Stone. Now some of y'all, Team Cube and Clean has been reminding me, hey, don't forget about Jordan Richards, who they got from the Patriots practice squad last year, right before they played the Patriots. And Anthony Levine too. But I think it'll be Joker's to lose. Next question came from a guy, Ramel B. He said, A, engraving love, the video's been watching your content now for about a year. A, appreciate it man, happy anniversary. He said, I was just wondering where Earl Thomas leaving a hole in potentially some good cap space. Would you see the Ravens moving Jimmy Smith to safety? I think this would be a great move for him if we don't. How good will it be to even think about maybe putting Juice Man, Marcus Peters back there, and then using that money to go get Logan Ryan, who was a dog in New England and is used to learning and studying a hard to learn and complex defense. I think Juice Man or Jimmy can make that transition and transition well. As always, love the content and shout out to the Team Cube and Clean movement. Appreciate it, Ramel. Marcus Peters, I would say no. I would say an immediate no to that. Not because I don't think he can do it. I think he would do well there because he already got a good nose for the ball. He got a good knack for finding the ball, for picking off the ball, for just creating turnovers. So I think it would be an easy transition for him. And then, especially too, as a corner, you're kind of limited on what you can see. I mean, you got, especially as an outside corner.  And I feel like for Marcus Peters to have everything in front of him, I feel like that wouldn't even be fair. But I definitely would not, not, not, not, not want to make that move for him transitioning to free safety now because he's a corner.  No, he's still doing his thing. Marcus Peters is just finding that corner. He needs to stay at corner. So no changing Marcus Peters. Jimmy Smith, I wouldn't mind if they did sort of a mix because Jimmy Smith still a good corner. If he's healthy, he's still a good corner. Still a really good corner. So if, but if they did like, if he did a little hybrid thing, he plays some safety every now and then, but still play corner two. I could see something like that. You got certain packages and whatnot where Jimmy Smith drops back as a safety. I could see that. And that, with him, I think he would be good at that too. Now I know some people say Jimmy Smith a little stiff in the hip sometimes. But I think as a safety, I think he would do really good. Cause again, everything will be in front of him. Everything will be in front of him. And he, oh yeah. I think Jimmy Smith will be, I think he'll make a great safety. But yeah, if I had to pick one of the two, it would definitely be Jimmy Smith. Next question came from my guy, Earl C. He said, what's up in Graven? How's everything? I'm going to keep this short and sweet. I got a strong feeling Jimmy Smith is going to move to safety. He's going to be good. In my opinion, I feel that's why this release was so easy and quick. I wouldn't call it quick. I mean, once the punch story came out, it was rather quick after that, but I wouldn't call the whole thing quick. Anyway, he said, the Ravens already had a backup plan in place. What are your thoughts? Thanks for all that you do. I enjoyed the channel and wish everyone the best. I appreciate it, Earl. Thank you, man. And like I said, I would mind them moving Jimmy Smith to safety, but not moving him permanently. Well, I wouldn't mind that either, but I would rather him be like a hybrid type of thing. Even though like we, if Jimmy moves to safety, but the Sean Elliott is there too, of course, Levine, Geno Stone, Chuck Clark, of course, but our corners, our corners be Marlon, MP, and Tay-Tay. Then we got Anthony Averdes-Will. Who am I missing? We had Amy Marshall, but he was on Injured Reserve. We got Tyrell Bonds. We had, we got Josh Nurse. I know he's hurt right now. Well, as of this video, he's hurt. It's August 26th at 10.01 PM. So training camp, they were off today, so they gonna be back on tomorrow. So yeah, wow. So yeah, we could use another corner. So that's all with Jimmy Smith. If he made that, not necessarily permanent transition, but before this season or whatever, I can say, I think it could work good, man. But I would just rather him be like more of a hybrid guy right now. Speaking of safety, he's moving around. He said, my next question came from my guy, Javis Fowler. He said, Jimmy Smith, the strong safety, move Chuck Clark to free safety. Bring back Eric Guetta. Oh, you know what? Let me just go ahead and delete that last question for you, because that's a no-no. Jimmy Smith, the strong safety, move Chuck Clark to free. No, I want Chuck Clark to stay exactly where he was at last year. Exactly where he was at last year. You know, I don't know how his range is, though. I don't know how his range is. But I would want him to stay where he was at last year. Just don't fix anything that's not broken. Next question from my guy, Thomas Morgan. I don't know what was going on here. He said, should the Raven sign Shannon Sharp? That's it? Ain't no LOL on the end of it. Ain't no follow up. Cut and dry. Should the Raven sign Shannon Sharp? Hey, does Shannon Sharp still got it? Hey, I don't know, man. Maybe they could sign him, because Shannon Sharp, he could get up on that line of scrimmage, he could line up as a tight end, and that linebacker might be in his face at a safety, or even if they put a corner on him or something, they're gonna be like, oh, you're an old man, you can't do nothing. Then Shannon Sharp gets to talking, and boy, he had somebody cracking up on the field, man.  Boom, touchdown. Next question came from a boy, Nicholas Wallace. He said, is Marlon Humphrey switching back to 29 now that Earl Thomas is gone? Hashtag team keep it clean. No, he's not. He said he's going to keep 44. Next question came from a boy, Jarvis Fowler. He said, Bobby Ingram said that Patrick Ricard has a tight end role. What are your thoughts on this? Do you see him playing tight end? No, maybe just they could line him up there just as a blocker, but I do not see them putting him in no tight end role. He barely catches any passes like that. When he does catch me, he's got some reliable hands, man. He don't be dropping there, but I don't see them lining him up at tight end, or at least to go run any routes. As a blocker, as an extra offensive lineman, yeah, I could see that, but as like really a pass catching tight end, no, I, no, no, don't see that at all. Next question came from a guy, Nubian Sage. He said, with the subtraction of Earl Thomas, I hate to see him go. I think he did a good job for us. He did, he really did. Do you think we'll be okay at the backup safety position? Gino Stone and Nigel Warrior now have a good chance to make this team. They have good size, which is probably a problem for the Sean Elliott, because he looks a little fragile. I would like to see our rookie step up so we don't have to look at another veteran free agent. And that would be cool if, well, of course the goal seems to be that the Sean Elliott end up being the guy, end up being the starter, end up being the number one, and staying healthy, because that's huge. But yeah, like you said, it does give Nigel Warrior undrafted rookie free agent, does give Gino Stone, I believe he was our seventh round pick, I wanna say. It gives them a better chance to make the roster, because those are some dudes that before all this, they were probably on the roster bubble, but we're probably gonna go to practice squad or something like that. Either way, now they have a chance to actually make the 53 or 55, whatever it is. And we just hope that they will continue to be students of the game, and they will just step up. Now we got a temper expectations too, with them, because they are inexperienced. The Sean Elliott is inexperienced. So there's gonna be problems, there's gonna be bumps in the road and whatnot, it's gonna be hiccups. So with all that being said, I do think that Sean Elliott can do a very good job, but we just hope that he can stay healthy. And again, it's not like it's been the same injury over and over, it's been a forearm fracture and then the leg injury. So two completely separate different injuries, which is a good thing, but still injuries nonetheless. So hopefully his body holds up this year.  He's played it like six games and has started zero of it. So that's something that we're keeping out on and just be mindful of going into this season. And that's with anybody who's back there, that's currently on the roster, cause all of our safeties are super young. Next questions came from my boy Adam L. He said, they ain't graven, hope you and your family are doing well. I guess since there's left without a deal, it means he didn't make the team. Maybe he'll get an offer from another team. I don't know, we'll see. He said, perhaps EDC and hardball were looking for more speed than what they saw and might wait till someone gets cut from another team during training camp. That's true. I recently saw your tweet on where Yonah King-Gagway was recently seen arriving at a Pittsburgh airport, which brought to mind that perhaps Philly may be in progress of a trade form. Now that tweet, that was a joke. That wasn't really Yonah King-Gagway there. That was just an ongoing joke that a lot of different people on NFL Twitter have been putting up saying that that guy, I think it's Larry Fitzgerald or something like that, but they've been saying that guy is like random players and whatnot. So that wasn't really Yonah King-Gagway. And he said, now I know B-Moy has signed Ken Bonham, mostly to try out and perhaps take over the role as kick-returner if he makes the team. But recently I got into a little shuffle on Facebook with a couple of fans saying in his career he's also played the role as a versatile running back, like when he played with Philly, Atlanta and Carolina. So if he wants to take over that number four running back role, with Ravens could perhaps trade Justice Hill and get a draft pick or a cornerback now that one of our own are out for the season. Justice Hill rarely touched the ball last season as the number three running back. And now that we've drafted J.K. Dobbins, he's probably gonna barely get any touches again this season as the number four running back. So what do you think? Ooh. That, it is a possibility, man. I know he did suffer an injury the other day in practice though. So maybe tomorrow we'll get an update on what's going on with Ken Bonham because that's very, that's crucial. Because with him, I know a lot of people are like, oh yeah, he ain't gonna make the team, he ain't gonna make the team, he ain't gonna make the team. But if you somebody that can be a return, man, so you could play special teams and you got a lot of experience on playing on an offense too, that's, that bodes well for your chances, man. And he's up against, his biggest competition is Justice Hill. And Justice Hill, due to no fault of his own cause he was a rookie last year, but he didn't get many opportunities so he doesn't have much experience. So Ken Bonham has that going in his favor. And that's tough for Justice, man. So Ravens, they could make a move, man. You never know, but it all depends on the health of Ken and Bonham, which by the time y'all see this video, we will have find out the health of him. Cause again, I'm recording this on August 26th at 10, 11 PM. So we'll see. But it's definitely a possibility, man. And the last question of this episode, NFL questions from subscribers came from my guy, Carlos O. He said, what's up, Raven? I got a few questions for you. Hope y'all doing well. Family, friends and the best team, team keeping clean. Appreciate that, man. He said, you surviving this craziness with Earl Thomas? Considering that they cut ties with him, do you believe that this will be more of a sign of our young guys? And if they get a good deal with Judon and cut Brandon Williams next year, do you believe that they will be able to sign Ronnie, Zeus, Marlon and Mark Andrews in the future? Oh, well, first and foremost, yeah, this is definitely a sign so far that the young guys will be playing, that it's gonna be a lot of the young guys that are playing. And with the young guys that will be playing, they're just gonna get more opportunities. They're gonna get a lot more opportunities than they have gotten before. Obviously to Sean Elliott and possibly even Geno Stone or Nigel Warrior just for them to even make the team like we talked about earlier. But I still think the Ravens are gonna end up signing a veteran. Who that veteran is? No clue. We've got some indicates. Again, I'll talk about Tony Jefferson, maybe Brandon Carl, we'll see, but you know Ravens, you know Ravens like that. They like to pull that swerve, man. They like to pull that way. He's like, whoa, I didn't see that coming. But anyway, and then he said, yeah, if they can get a good deal with Judon and cut Brandon Williams next year, do you believe they'll be able to sign Ronnie, Stanley, Zeus, Marlon and Mark Andrews in the future? That'd be nice. With Judon, I think they're still on the fence about him. But as far as signing, keeping all of those guys, that would be great if they could do that. It's possible, but that's a lot. That's a lot. And you said in anybody else I might have missed? I mean, I don't know, Mark Jackson maybe? Yeah, I don't know, man. But like, oh man, that's a lot of money, man. So and you talking about them signing Judon too? So you talking about them signing Judon, Ronnie Stanley, Orlando Brown Jr., Marlon Humphrey and Mark Andrews? Whoa. I don't know about all that. They definitely ain't keeping all of those guys. Not no Judon and Ronnie Stanley and Zeus and Marlon and Mark. There's no way to keep all five of them. I don't see that at all. They gonna have to pick from the end because you got Lamar coming up too? No. And then you say, who do you see taking Earl's spot? Jimmy Smith? Or do you think they put this year's pick? I think his name is Gino. I may be wrong in that spot, because as you mentioned, Elliot has had issues with injuries or do they try to bring in a vet? I think all of the above could happen. All of the above. Obviously, DeSean Elliot again, he's the front runner for the position, but with Gino Smith with Earl Thomas stepping out, Gino Smith could step up and not necessarily as a safety or whatnot, but on special teams, that's where it's gonna start for him. That's where he's gonna be very important on special teams as a special teamer. And then if opportunities present themselves, hey, for instance, what if Ravens have a blowout game or something? Hey, Gino, go get in that safety. Okay, cool, boom. That's his shot. That will be his shot. So that, and then of course with Jimmy Smith too, because I would wink, he loves moving guys around. He likes moving guys around. So yeah, DeSean Elliot is primed to be the free safety for now, but as a free safety, you're not gonna be dropped back all the time. You're gonna blip sometime too. You're gonna move around and whatnot. You're gonna be in the box. You're gonna be around a line of scrimmage and whatnot.  No, so he can move DeSean Elliot around, move Jimmy Smith around, move the different guys around and have them all over the field because you know that's what wink likes to do. And then he said, oh, do they try to bring in a vet? I think they'll do that as well. I think they're gonna end up bringing in a vet as safety. Somebody that can sort of push DeSean Elliot and somebody that can have there as a guy, as a Justin K. Sky. Like Justin K., something happens with DeSean Elliot because as much as they all love DeSean Elliot, I still don't think that they are gonna put all their eggs into the DeSean Elliot basket. It's just what it is. Yeah, we talk, it's foreshad, I think grieving being. Yeah, this feels like a dream.


That concludes general questions. The next item of business is First Minister's questions, and at question number one I call Douglas Ross. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer, and I want to start by welcoming the decisive action announced by our new Prime Minister to halt rising energy bills. This vital support will save families £1,000 on their bills on top of the £37 billion of help that's already been announced, and I'm sure the whole chamber will welcome the measures from the UK Government to support people and businesses across the country right now. First Minister, yesterday your Government announced £560 million of cuts. The cost of living crisis means difficult decisions for governments all over the country, but do you now regret that so much money was wasted on ferries that haven't been built, a scandal that so far cost taxpayers £250 million when that money could have been used to address the cost of living crisis? Can I also take the opportunity to welcome the very belated action on energy bills that the new Prime Minister has just announced in the House of Commons? I've not yet seen all of the detail, but I am aware of the headline. While I welcome it, can we also be very clear, Presiding Officer, that it does not represent a halt to the rise in energy bills? Average energy bills right now are just under £2,000. A cap of £2,500 will still see people pay more for their energy. Of course, if we go back to the spring of this year, average energy bills were around £1,200, so people are seeing soaring energy costs because of a broken energy market and the utter incompetence of this UK Government. Last but not least, as things stand, all the costs of what has been announced today are going to fall on consumers and taxpayers when oil and gas companies making windfall profits should be making a contribution. I think that we can see who's sight the UK Government is on today. Secondly, Presiding Officer, yes, the Deputy First Minister outlined savings that are having to be made in the Scottish Government's budget this year. Let me remind the purpose of those savings. Firstly, so that we can ensure that public sector workers get the fairest possible pay rises. Secondly, we continue to target resources to those who need the most in this cost of living crisis. That is the backdrop at a budget this year that, because of inflation, is worth £1.7 billion less than it was when we published it. The other thing that we need to see the new Prime Minister do is increase funding for devolved administrations so that we can support public services and public sector workers. Lastly, Presiding Officer, no, I don't regret the actions that this Government took to save Ferguson's shipyard and to ensure that those working there still have a job. That is important. Of course, we will continue to take action to ensure that the two ferries are completed and that work continues. Well, there we have it. It's official. Nicola Sturgeon doesn't regret wasting £250 million of taxpayers' money when that money is needed right now to help our services. Because if her Government hadn't wasted a quarter of a billion pounds trying and failing to build ferries, that money could have been used elsewhere in the SNP's budget. Those failures leave islanders without lifeline services and they take money away from the front-line spending that we need here in Scotland. We know that nearly £50 million of emergency Covid support went to fix these ferries instead of going to the businesses who needed it. An internal analysis by the ferry operator Semal has indicated that the number and the severity of the issues and faults with these ships means that it will be difficult for the vessels to achieve acceptance by Semal and enter into service. So, what plans does the First Minister have in place if, as experts fear, maybe the case, these vessels never become fit to sail and more money needs to be diverted away from the cost of living crisis to make up for these failures? What Douglas Ross has just said about Covid money being directed to Ferguson's is simply not true. He should take the opportunity to reflect on that and withdraw that. That misunderstanding came from the name of a particular budget line. It did not reflect how money had been allocated. Although, if I am wrong on this, media sources have already corrected that, so perhaps Douglas Ross wants to reflect further on that. Secondly, on the issues around ferries, I have made clear on many occasions my regret at the cost overrun of that. That is why it is so important that we continue to focus on completing the ferries. Even if we took Douglas Ross at his word about £250 million, which of course would not be in one year, that would still leave the rest of the £1.7 billion that her budget has been eroded by because of inflation soaring out of control under this UK Government. It would still leave us with the £700 million that we have had to allocate unbudgeted for higher pay deals because of the soaring inflation being presided over by this UK Government. We will continue to take the hard decisions to get support to where it is needed most. Of course, one of the pressures on all construction projects right now is inflation, which this UK Government is failing to get under control. However, we will continue to focus on making sure that the ferries now are completed on the revised budget and on the revised timeline. Douglas Ross muted a pause here because, of course, the First Minister did her usual thing to blame Westminster for everything but not actually address the question that I put. Sorry, Mr Ross. I will not have members shouting at one another from a sedentary position. Please just resist the temptation. Well, I hope that the Deputy First Minister does resist that temptation, although he seems to do it quite a lot, because he does not want to hear what members are saying. The First Minister's answer was all about what the UK Government has done wrong. Nothing about what Seymal is saying about these ships may never enter service. All that money, hundreds of millions of pounds that could be wasted. Today, the First Minister's former right-hand man, the disgraced Derek Mackay, appeared before a Scottish Parliament committee to discuss the ferries scandal, a scandal that has hit Scottish public finances and where we still do not know why the Government made the disastrous call they did. At the public audit committee today, the ex-finance minister outlined what he believes went wrong with his contracts before we understand he was smuggled out of this building by Parliament officials. Does the First Minister agree with all the evidence that Derek Mackay gave today? I have not had the opportunity to look at all the evidence that Derek Mackay gave to the committee. I am sure that I will take the opportunity to do that as soon as I am able to. Douglas Ross keeps quoting Seymal and saying that Seymal's view is that the ferries will never be in service. Let me quote the chief executive of Seymal, Kevin Hobbs, just in June. I am quoting directly here. There is not much now which is standing in the way of both of them being delivered. There are a lot of detractors out there saying rather spurious things about them, but we have always had a view that both would be finished. I wouldn't suggest that the detractors out there saying rather spurious things was a reference to Douglas Ross. Others, of course, may reach that conclusion. I like it, but Seymal has said that the number and the severity of faults may lead to the fact that these ships never sail. If the First Minister does not want to hear it, that is fine, but that is coming from Seymal. It seems that she does not like to hear a lot of things. It is amazing how often Nicola Sturgeon has never seen or never heard anything that is potentially a difficult question. We know that there was significant evidence given by Derek Mackay today. During the First Minister's recent run at the Edinburgh Fringe, she said that the disastrous ferry contracts were not a scandal. This is where we saw the First Minister during the summer, and she said that the ferry contracts were not a scandal. Her words at the Edinburgh Fringe were, I will wait for the SNP to be quiet, because I think that it is important that everyone hears this. The First Minister's words were that this has not been a scandal with the ferries. It is a situation. 250 million pounds up in smoke, nothing to show for it. If that is not a scandal, I do not know what it is. Today, even disgraced Derek Mackay accepted that the purchase of the ferries was catastrophic. That is the bit that maybe Nicola Sturgeon did not see today. Her former loyal lieutenant admitted how awful this mistake was, even though it further ruins his already trashed reputation. Why cannot Nicola Sturgeon admit that this is a downright scandal that is taking hundreds of millions of pounds away from tackling the cost of living crisis that we are facing here in Scotland right now? First Minister, I am happy to answer any questions on this. I have answered many questions on this, and I have made my views very clear on this. Douglas Ross does not like it when he quotes Seamall, and I quote the chief executive saying the exact opposite. Perhaps he should be less selective in that. On the wider issues, Douglas Ross has stood up here, and I think that it is quite staggering and says that there is nothing to show for the investment in Ferguson's shipyard. I do not know about a Conservative, but I think that almost 400 jobs does not equate to nothing to show. We value people's jobs and we take action wherever we can to protect people's jobs, and that is perhaps the difference between this Government and the Conservatives. We will continue to focus on the job at hand. That is what people expect of us, and I will happily answer any questions for as long as Douglas Ross wants to ask questions on this issue. I suspect that Douglas Ross's choice of topic today is more a reflection on his own difficulties than anything else. After all, it is not me that started this new parliamentary term with one MSP standing down from his front bench and another MSP quitting Parliament altogether, so perhaps he has not got his own troubles to seek. The cost of living crisis is a national emergency. Therefore, I welcome that we have finally seen action from the UK Government, but I do not believe that it goes far enough. Let's be clear that this is not a freeze. Energy prices will still be going up for households across the country. There is not enough support for businesses and charities, and there is no meaningful windfall tax, meaning households and businesses will pay in the long term, not companies who are making record profits. Moving to the action that the Scottish Government can take, I welcome the commitment to a rent freeze and a winter eviction ban. This is long overdue, but I think that it needs to go further. So can I ask the First Minister when will the legislation be brought to Parliament? Given the majority of social rents will rise on April 1, will she extend the freeze to cover this period? Will she commit to a review towards the end of the freeze with an option to extend if necessary and to avoid a sharp hike when the freeze is lifted? Will she commit that a rent regulator will be in place in order to cap any future rises? First Minister, the emergency legislation will be introduced very soon. We have not yet determined the date for that, but we need to introduce it soon because Parliament needs to act at pace to pass that. We want that legislation to be passed within three months so that the freeze that I announced was effective from that date. That will happen at pace, and I encourage all members to engage very constructively with the detail of that. As all members will be aware, it is important that we get legislation right to ensure that if there are any legal challenges to it, it has the best possible chance ofwithstanding those. Secondly, yes, I will commit to an on-going review of the emergency legislation. We have said very clearly that we intend the two proposals that I announced on Tuesday, the rent freeze and the moratorium on evictions to be in place until at least the end of March. We will review that regularly and, of course, we will keep open the option of extending that further, depending on the wider situation. Lastly, I also said this on Tuesday, that these are by definition because they are emergency measures temporary. How temporary they prove to be will depend on the reviews that I have just spoken about. However, they are intended to pave the way for longer-term reforms, to bring greater affordability to the rented sector, particularly to the private rented sector, and to give greater protections to tenants. The wider issues that Anna Sarwar has raised today will fully be taken into account in that longer-term work. I welcome that response from the First Minister. We will engage proactively with the legislation, and the sooner we can do that, taking into account the legal complexities, the better. We will continue to push for the freeze to cover 1 April, because that will give people certainty. We welcome the agreement to review with a view to extending as an option. I would again push the First Minister on implementing a rent regulator so that we can make sure that there is not excessive increases when the freeze is finally lifted. Rent is not the only costs that are rising. We have been calling for a rent freeze since June, but we have also been calling for a reduction in rail fares since April. However, the SNP published a document outlining what actions European countries were taking in the face of the cost of living crisis. In that document, it included examples from Germany, Spain and Ireland that have all cut rail fares. ScotRail is now in public ownership. The decision on rail fares is for this Government. Will the First Minister commit to Labour's plan for having rail fares that could save consumers up to £130 a month? Let me take two aspects of that issue. I intend to be constructive, and I invite Labour to engage constructively on both of those points. We have confirmed, as I did on Tuesday, a freeze in ScotRail fares until the end of March. The Deputy First Minister said yesterday that we will be considering in the context of our emergency budget review extending that further. We will also consider in the context of that emergency budget review, not just on rail fares but on a whole range of other areas where we can go further to help people with the cost of living crisis. However, it is important, not just important, it is inevitable and essential that it is done in the context of that budget review. I set out very starkly, as did the Deputy First Minister yesterday, the realities of our budget position. 1.7 billion pounds less, so it is worth it than when we published it. Increasing pressures from public sector pay from the costs of housing Ukrainians, for example, which none of us grudge at all. We can't raise taxes within a financial year. We can't borrow for day-to-day spending and all of our reserves are already allocated. If we want to spend more on anything, we have to find other places in our budget to take that from. That process started yesterday. I say in all sincerity to Anna Sarwar that we will consider in good faith any suggestion that is made, but any suggestion that involves more spending in this financial year has to come with a saving from elsewhere. I would encourage Anna Sarwar to engage on that part as well. I thank the First Minister for that answer. I think that we need to go further than a freeze. To be clear, getting more passengers on our railways actually potentially makes money for our railways. Also, it helps us to confront not just the cost of living crisis, but also the climate crisis if we can change that pattern of behaviour, get people out of vehicles and into our railways. I would push the First Minister to be bolder and more ambitious, because that is not a time for timidity or for delay. Our emergency cost of living act included a rent freeze and a winter eviction ban, which we welcome, but it also included having rail fares, capping bus fares, a £100 water bill rebate, writing off school meal debts, topping up the Scottish welfare fund and establishing a business hardship fund to help to keep small businesses going. I know that the First Minister will say that the Scottish Government has to find the money. That is why I welcome an emergency budget review, but it has to be an open, genuine and transparent one. So when recognising the national emergency, open up the books to all parties and let's have a Team Scotland approach to actually using the powers of this Parliament to confront the cost of living crisis and help people here in Scotland. We will engage on that basis, and I am sure that the Deputy First Minister will be happy to have open discussions with any party about how we meet this challenge, as long as the starting point for that discussion is accepting the reality. If we want to spend more on anything this year, as all of us, I think, do, that money has to be found elsewhere in our budget. Some of the things Anna Sarwar has suggested, we will consider everything in good faith. Take bus fare, for example. Around half of the Scottish population don't pay for bus travel already. Nobody under 22, nobody over 60. That is a sign of how we are using the powers of this Parliament. In terms of increasing money, I know that Labour called for that to be in the tenant hardship fund, but we have doubled the fuel and security fund. We have committed to increasing the budget for discretionary housing payments. Of course, we are extending free school meals beyond any other government in the UK. The Scottish child payment, once the extensions announced earlier this week take effect, will deliver £1,300 in support for every eligible child under the age of 16. Again, that does not exist anywhere else in the UK. We are using our powers and we will continue to do them. Let me share some reflections from somebody else well known to Anna Sarwar this week. This week's programme for government, announced by the First Minister, was a creative and coherent response to the poverty pandemic that we are all facing. Credit where it is due, the SNP is being upfront and on the front foot in explaining what is happening to the public finances. Those are comments from Kezia Dugdale, one of Anna Sarwar's predecessors as Scottish Labour leader. We now move to constituency and general supplementaries, and I call Christine Grahame. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. First Minister, as you are aware, this is international as well as national suicide prevention week. Without scaremongering, inflationary pressures, both domestic and business, may very well push some folk to the brink. What measures can the Scottish Government take to help desperate people, for example, lasing organisations such as the Samaritans, who might commend for all they do? First Minister, I thank Christine Grahame for raising an extremely important issue. The cost of living crisis, of course, coming so quickly on the back of the Covid crisis, is having an impact on the mental health of many people across the country. The Scottish Government will continue to do all we can, working with third sector organisations like Samaritans, who do such a fantastic job in this area, but also continuing to invest in mental health services. This is something that is going to continue to be a priority for the foreseeable future, and I'm sure much beyond that. Finlay Carson. The First Minister will be aware of the worrying news of the possible closure of Rowan Glen yogurt factory in my constituency, with a potential loss of 50 jobs. That would be a hugely significant loss of jobs in the rural area, and could result in the loss of a well-known and respected brand located in the heart of Scotland's milkfield. I appreciate that businesses across Scotland are facing extraordinary pressure, particularly with energy costs. However, given the importance of the dairy industry and more widely the food and drink sector to Galloway, would the First Minister assure the workforce and other stakeholders that our Government and its agencies are prepared to look at extraordinary solutions and think out of the box and be proactive in exploring every opportunity to give the loyal and skilled workforce the platform to continue production of their much-loved and valued products? Yes, I will give that assurance. That is the approach that we always take when businesses are in difficulty. I was certainly very concerned to hear that Dale Farm Group is holding a consultation over the proposed closure of the Rowan Glen dairy factory in Newton Stuart, and I know that this will be a very difficult time for the company's staff and for their families. The people affected by this development are, of course, everybody's immediate priority, and the Government will do everything in our power to help those affected, including through our PACE initiative. I can say that South of Scotland Enterprise has held discussions with the company this week and is working closely with it to investigate all areas of potential assistance so that it can provide help to try to mitigate the need for any job losses. I encourage the Dale Farm Group to explore all available options to secure the site's future and to redeploy any affected staff to help to minimise the impact on the workforce. I know that the business minister has spoken with local MSPs already and will take steps to ensure that they are kept updated. I am concerned about the E. coli outbreaks that we are experiencing in nurseries in Musselborough, and my colleague Mark Wittfield has raised concerns about the outbreaks in Haddington. In the guidance notes that they received, families were told that under the Public Health Act they were required to isolate, but the formal exclusion letter that they received 13 days later gave contradictory advice, so families have had no help despite their loss of earnings. What action is the Scottish Government taking in response to the outbreaks of E. coli and will it look to put in place a loss of earnings scheme to support those families who have borne the brunt of this day back? I am very well aware of the E. coli outbreaks and share her concern about this public health Scotland. It will not only be monitoring the situation, but also taking or advising all appropriate steps. In terms of the particular issue that she has raised about contradictory information, if she can make that available to my office or to the office of the health secretary, I am very happy to give an undertaking to look into that as quickly as possible and come back to her with more detail once I have had the opportunity to do so. Yesterday, at Prime Minister's Questions, we heard Liz Truss advocating her belief that nuclear power and now fracking have a role in abating the energy crisis. I know that the commitment of the Tories to transformational changes needs to achieve net zero is waver thin, just as I know that the Scottish Government's position in these matters is clear, so I therefore ask the First Minister what her response is to the Prime Minister's comments. First Minister, let me take the opportunity to reaffirm the Scottish Government's position on fracking. This is a devolved matter. Our position is unchanged. We do not intend to grant licences for fracking. We do not think that that is the solution to the crisis that is currently faced. In fact, let me quote someone else. No amount of shale gas would be enough to lower the European price. That is, of course, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer speaking earlier this year. Similarly, our position is unchanged on nuclear. We do not support new nuclear, certainly not with existing technology. The reality is that Scotland has vast potential in renewables. Offshore and onshore wind can already be generated more cheaply than gas-fired power or nuclear power. That is where we need to focus our efforts, and that is exactly what the Scottish Government is going to do. Oliver Mundell, I kindly ask the First Minister to not seek to politicise my family life just as I would never seek to do so when it comes to hers. I have received reports from NHS whistleblowers in Dumfries and Galloway that paramedics attending a call-out in the past week were told having urgently requested a doctor as required under the Mental Health Act that there was no on-call doctor available in the region. This comes on top of concerns being raised by unsafe staffing levels at DGRI and allegations of bullying. First Minister, this is completely unacceptable. My constituents are worried that NHS staff are sounding alarm bells. What steps can the Government take to make sure that our NHS is functioning safely and meeting basic health needs? On Oliver Mundell's first point, although I am not sure that there is any aspect of my life that the Tories would not seek to politicise if they thought they could, I genuinely wish him well and do that in all sincerity. On the very serious question that he has raised, obviously the health service is operating under extreme pressure and the health secretary and the Government is acting to support the health service as it recovers from Covid. That applies to all aspects of healthcare from ambulance waiting times through to accident emergency to outpatient and inpatient waiting times and seeking to support our staff in that process as well. In terms of the specific serious issue that has been raised, if more detail can be provided to my office and to the health secretary, we will look into the specifics of that and reply to Oliver Mundell as soon as possible. Alex Rowley The First Minister will be aware of the Sunday Mail investigation showing that the use of private agency nursing in the NHS is spiralling out of control. Can the First Minister understand the frustration of hard-working and exhausted nurses when these same agencies put out recruitment adverts saying that they will pay nurses the rate that nurses deserve, meaning much higher than NHS pay? Will the Scottish Government commit today to a fair pay for all NHS workers that we all clap for during Covid and who are holding their NHS together under significant pressure? First Minister Thank you, Presiding Officer. Firstly, spend on agency staff in the NHS is a tiny fraction of the overall NHS budget. Secondly, the majority of temporary staffing comes from the NHS staff bank and those are NHS staff on NHS contracts at NHS rates of pay. In terms of NHS pay, I agree with the member and I think that that is evidenced in the fact that agenda for change NHS staff in Scotland are already better paid than they are in other parts of the UK because we take so seriously our obligation to reward them properly. We are in extremely difficult financial times and that has been set out very clearly to the chamber this week. NHS negotiations around pay are on-going, but just as was the case with other public sector workers, we want to ensure that our NHS staff get the fairest possible deal. I know that the health secretary takes that extremely seriously in these negotiations. To ask the First Minister what further steps the Scottish Government will take to support tenants facing the cost of living crisis. The impacts of the cost of living crisis are being felt by all households and disproportionately impact people on the lowest incomes. In that, of course, it can include tenants. Therefore, as announced this week, we will introduce emergency legislation to deliver a moratorium on evictions and a rent freeze until at least the 31st of March next year. We are also extending the tenant grant fund and investing an additional £5 million in discretionary housing payments, increasing our total financial support to over £88 million for housing support that mitigates UK Government policies like the bedroom tax, the benefit cap and local housing allowance. The Parliament does not yet have the levers that we desperately need to respond fully to the cost of living crisis. Therefore, we will continue to urge the UK Government to comprehensively and urgently take the actions that are needed to combat it. I thank the First Minister for that welcome response. Does she agree that the ambition that she outlined in the programme for government to introduce a rent freeze and a halt to evictions puts the Scottish Government far ahead of anywhere else in the UK in protecting tenants? That commitment should rightly be seen as a central part of our far-reaching programme of reform outlined in the new deal for tenants, which is being led by my green colleague Patrick Harvie as Minister for Tenants Rights, and that our shared commitment shows the value of political co-operation in developing detailed, workable and robust protections for tenants. Yes, I agree with all of that. It is a statement of fact that the announcement this week puts us on this issue as on so many other issues ahead of any other part of the UK. In fact, I saw the mayor of London City comment on Tuesday that he wished he had the powers to do something similar. It is also an important commitment that will help to ease the cost pressures that people are facing, and it is therefore very important in that context. Yes, I absolutely agree that it is an example of what can be achieved when parties come together constructively to work together in the interests of the people of Scotland. That is what the SNP and the Greens are doing. That is one very good example of many of that constructive joint working. Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, told the BBC that the support package from the UK Government would mean that the majority of the money will go to better off people who use more energy and that it was very poorly targeted. Can I ask the First Minister what her views are on that assessment, and does she agree with me that nothing currently proposed by the Tories goes far enough to ameliorate the steepening crisis for people and businesses? Thank you. Ms Whitham's question was not related wholly to the substantive questions. I would be grateful if the First Minister could address it very briefly. I share the concerns that we have a new Prime Minister who does not think that redistribution is important and that she does not think that there is anything unfair about giving more help to the better off than to the worst off. My main concern, and it is relevant to rents because that is relevant to the overall cost crisis in what has been announced today, is that it does not freeze energy bills. We need a proper freeze in energy bills and I think it is important to continue to press the UK Government to do that. Mercedes Villalba. Thank you. When myself and Living Rent first raised the need for an emergency rent freeze with the First Minister back in April, the average rent in Scotland was £780. It now stands at £840. That is at least a 10 per cent increase in just five months. Labour proposed a rent freeze in June but SNP and green MSPs teamed up with the Tories to block this. Their political choice to unnecessarily delay support for a rent freeze led to further financial hardship for tenants. In fairness to tenants, will the First Minister explore backdating the rent freeze to June? The First Minister has been well canvassed and rehearsed in this chamber. There were very real reasons why that amendment could not be supported. As I said to Anna Sarwar, I hope that it is something that everybody who wants to see this policy successfully implemented will accept. We need to make sure that it can withstand any legal challenge. It is also unlikely to be the case that that test would be met if legislation is applied retrospectively and I think that that is an important point to take account of. However, I make a final point which would be to pay tribute to Mercedes Villalba for the work that she has done on this issue. I think that it has been important and I think that it is to her great credit and I want to thank her for that because we have taken account of many of the points that she has made in reaching the decision that we announced to power. The Parliament will be in the Parliament earlier this week. To ask the First Minister, in light of the loss of life as a result of road traffic incidents on the A9 over the summer, on sections of the road that have not been dualled, what plans the Scottish Government has to publish a timetable setting out when the dualling of the A9 and the A96 will be delivered? Can I first express my sympathies to everyone affected by the loss of a loved one and to anyone who has been injured on our roads over the summer? Road safety is of paramount importance to this Government. Indeed, to everyone in our road safety framework is backed by £21 million of funding. Work is continuing on the A9. The section between Tomaton and Moy is currently in procurement and it is expected that the construction contract will be awarded later this year. Design work is progressing on the rest of the programme with the statutory process well under way for seven of the remaining eight schemes. The evidence-based review on fully dualling the A96 between Inverness and Aberdeen will report by the end of this year and we will take forward enhancements on that corridor that improved connectivity between surrounding towns, tackles congestion and addresses safety and environmental issues. I thank the First Minister for her answer and join with her in sending our thoughts to the families of those who have sadly lost their lives. I would emphasise that my constituents sincerely believe that more lives are lost on single carriageway sections. Unlike dual carriageways, there is no central reservation separating opposing flows of traffic and hence the risk of head-on collisions is not reduced. Therefore, will the First Minister now provide reassurance and confidence to my constituents and also to the civil engineering sector by publishing revised and detailed timetables for delivery of our pledges, our long-standing pledges on dualling of the A9 and of the A96 starting from Inverness to Aberdeen, including the nearby bypass, thereby helping to save lives in the future? I won't repeat all of my first answer about the processes that are under way to deliver exactly that clarity. I certainly share Fergus Ewing's concerns in terms of safety and indeed that is why safety is of such paramount importance to this Government. As he will know, procurement is a complex process in which there are many rules that must be adhered to, but I can assure him that the work to determine the most suitable procurement option on the A9 is on-going and an update will be provided when this work is completed. Turning to the A96 Inverness to Nairn and the Nairn bypass, we need to complete the statutory approval process before setting a firm programme for delivery. However, we are continuing to progress the preparation stages with a view to completing that process as quickly as possible. The consultation referred to did not offer an option of dualling the A96 between Huntley and Aberdeen. First Minister, can the people in the north-east take it that this means dualling this stretch has been quietly dropped? First Minister, there is no change to what we set out in the Bute House agreement and in terms of the processes that are under way on that, I have already given detail in that in response to my answers to Fergus Ewing. To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has made of overtime in Scotland's NHS. Our health service is the largest employer in the country, with nearly 180,000 staff, many more than was the case when this Government took office. Paid overtime accounts for a tiny fraction of the total hours worked in our national health service. Like most organisations, health boards make limited use of paid overtime to help to manage unplanned absences alongside the NHS staff bank. It can also be used to ensure that care for patients is delivered. We are continuing to build on 10 consecutive years of increasing NHS staffing, and that is why we are investing £11 million over this Parliament for domestic and international recruitment. Last weekend, we discovered that hard-working NHS staff have put in 11 million hours of overtime in the last five years as a result of SNP workforce failures. They are burnt out and they are worn out, and the present situation is simply not sustainable. How can it be right that hard-pressed doctors and nurses are being forced to work millions of extra hours to make up for her failings in our NHS? It is worth noting what we are speaking about here in terms of the reported sum of money. It is less than 0.7 per cent of total NHS workforce spending. Of course it will be the case that staff work overtime, but it will also be the case that health boards make use of agency and to a greater extent NHS bank staffing. In terms of the record of this Government, there are, I think, 28,000 more staff working in our NHS now than when we took office. We have higher staffing per head of population than in England, where the Conservatives are in power significantly higher. We have the best-paid staff anywhere in the UK, so we will continue to build on that progress and continue to support the staff who do such a fantastic job in our national health service. To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government plans to take in the light of reported figures showing that sexual and violent crime in Scotland has risen significantly over the last five years. Crime, including violent crime, has fallen under this Government. However, recently there has been a rise in recorded sexual and violent crimes, and that may in part be because women are feeling now more confident to report such crimes to the police. We are taking forward a range of activity to reduce violence and challenging behaviours and attitudes, which we know can lead to violence against women and girls. We have invested £18.5 million in specialist advocacy support for survivors of gender-based violence through the Victim Centred Approach Fund and the Delivering Equally Safe Fund. It is providing £19 million per year to support projects that are focused on early intervention, prevention and support. Additionally, the criminal justice reform bill will further improve the experiences of victims in the justice system building on the recommendations of Lady Dorian. I welcome the fact that the Scottish Government has made justice such an important part of the programme for government. I know that the First Minister agrees that underlying these horrendous figures is a huge societal and global problem of male violence against women in Scotland that we need to tackle with urgency. However, it is not helping victims who come forward at the length of time that it can take to come to court in bearing in mind, as the First Minister has said, predominantly affecting women and children disproportionately. However, the Government recently extended time limits in the justice system in court cases. For example, in the preparation of the Crown case for the High Court, it used to be 80 days, it is now 260 days. Some victims of sexual assault and rape have been dropping cases because they cannot bear to wait the years that it sometimes takes to go to trial. As the First Minister, what can she do to make sure that, month on month, those delays are coming down as we go towards 2025? What kind of reassurance can the First Minister provide to victims of sexual crime that they will not have to wait years for justice? I know that Pauline McNeill accepts that. I agree entirely with the sentiment of her question. The trauma that anyone who is a victim of sexual crime or domestic abuse goes through is only compounded if there are delays in bringing the perpetrator to justice. There is a real seriousness of intent on the part of the Government. The question was what can we do. We need to ensure that the Crown Office is supported and resourced to tackle those backlaws and bring those waiting times down. We are determined to do that. I know that this is something that is extremely important to the Lord Advocate. I am sure that she would be willing to speak to Pauline McNeill and provide further information to MSPs about the work that has been done in the Crown Office to tackle those issues. If it is of interest, I will certainly convey that to the Lord Advocate. It is entirely up to her what information she chooses to share. I want to assure Pauline McNeill and the chamber and the wider public of how serious an issue we consider this to be and of the work that we will continue to do to deliver improvements. That concludes First Minister's Questions. At this point, colleagues, I am aware that a statement has been made at Westminster on the health of Her Majesty the Queen. I will monitor developments and keep members updated over the course of the day, but I am sure that the thoughts of all in Parliament are with Her Majesty at this time. That concludes First Minister's Questions. We will shortly move on to members' business.


We are standing on the government palace of Cape Verde at this first international drug conference of the Portuguese-speaking African countries. The conference was organized by the NGO Abidash in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice of Cape Verde. This event intended to promote and expand the strategic cooperation between governments, international bodies and civil society organizations in the field of drug policy. The intention of this conference was to put together the five Palo Alto countries talking about methodologies, knowledge, sharing information and trying to establish a common strategy and a common view and perspective about drug policy. This event here today is an important event because we have found in my country, Portugal, quite an interesting experience of drug policy in the last 11, 12 years. And I think that the exchange of the situation of the conditions of each country in the framework of the Portuguese-speaking countries is important. Well the region is vulnerable, policies are not well developed, there's not a good capacity for response and there's still a lot of denial, there's huge stigma around drug use. So what's great about this meeting is that the Portuguese have such an exemplary experience, their whole attitude toward drug use as a holistic problem, as a problem that concerns human rights, as a problem where you really can bring practical solutions to a very complex social issue. There are parts of this experience that really represent lessons that are almost universal, the idea that you've got to try to understand the situation of drug use, what motivates it, what situations people are in and whether there are services of the state that can help them get out of their problems. I respect to the processes of each country to make sure that no element of the African countries of the Portuguese official language is a narco-state. It is evident that the consumption of drugs and its social consequences are problems of modern societies. Therefore, these societies must not be indifferent or conceptual, they must, on the contrary, acquire the consciousness of the causes, as well as of the risks, threats and threats that they carry out. In the same context, the use and efficiency of the criminalization of the consumers, which, in the end, do not pass on victims of the system. My country is a fragile country where institutions are still at the stage of formation. The large bars of drugs take advantage, let's say, to make the country, more than 80 islands, and of those 80 islands, only 10% are inhabited, which means that the rest of the islands, without any kind of material conditions to monitor and fiscalize this part of the territory, in a very fertile area for the narco-traffickers, transport, therefore, from Latin America to the final consumption on the European continent. The drug destroys everything when it comes to the bases on which a society should sit. The drug destroys democracy, because the money of the drug sometimes negatively influences the choice of people, its own leaders. Our philosophy, and we are convinced that the State exists to create well-being for the population, to make justice for the population, but also to create security for all the citizens to live in harmony, in security conditions in their own territories. And the issue of the narco-trafficking comes with these three pillars, about which the State itself, which is the guarantee of security, the guarantee of well-being and the manufacture of justice. And it is natural that in my country also the consumption is not criminalized, which means that we also take a step towards Portugal. Portugal was a pioneer, let's say, in this perspective of no duplication, let's say, of the penalization of those who consume, because they are already protected by the fragile condition in which they meet and if they were criminalized, the practice of consumption would be double, let's say, without sacrifice. Saint-Méprince is an island, it is an island and it is a small country and we do not have the capacity to coordinate, to fiscalize our maritime waters. And we also have a serious problem of drug trafficking, particularly cocaine, taking into account that we have some difficulties in terms of means and mechanisms for the fiscalization of our waters and also our ports and airports. Well, the situation of drugs in Saint-Méprince, primarily to say that the first signs of drugs began to appear in 1995, therefore, at this time, both the consumption of trafficking and drug trafficking is worrying, because it has been sunny for a part of our population, which are young people. There are no statistics detailed in relation to the number or the index of people who consume drugs in Angola. Especially the young, young and teenagers are consuming a lot of drugs. The drug is not only light, but it also consumes a lot of heavy drugs, which is the famous Libanga. In Luanda, in the international airport, people always get caught in drug trafficking, which comes from Brazil, and they transport cocaine in various ways, such as capsules and others, carrying the same luggage. In the local discotheques there is a large consumption of drugs. In addition to the drug, which is cocaine, it also has a high consumption of alcohol itself. You know that alcohol, the drug that is in alcohol, which is beer, wine, whiskey, is cheaper than a bottle of water. Therefore, people with social problems, especially young people, have no job opportunities, no training opportunities. They consume drugs. After the distribution of the resources that the country has, this brings a lot of frustration to young people. Young people have a way out to ingrain themselves in drugs. First of all, there is elicit production on a large scale. In addition to this, there are those situations of drugs that not only transit through our country, but a part of this drug stays. Namely, it concerns the issue related to cocaine, which is often seen in Brazil. It passes through Mozambique and goes to South Africa, or goes to other squares. We do have some situations that concern us. Obviously, also the use of injectable drugs. And everything is done in the sense that, in the field of dissemination of educational information in front of drugs, we have privileged the creation of anti-drug drugs, not only in schools, but also in residential areas, in communities. We try to extend all this activity, even in the districts, so that we are not circumscribed only in the provincial capitals, but extend the action for all the points of our country. The treatment that is done in relation to drug consumers, is exactly to take them as patients, like people who are sick and people who need support. More than a penalization in relation to consumption, Mozambique does not encourage themselves through the use of drugs, but we do not recommend heavy penalizations in relation to drugs. Moreover, there are even procedures that are adopted in view of taking consumers to the treatment. In the situations in which the drug user himself predisposes to collaborate so that it can be submitted to the treatment, it removes this possibility of being penalized. And these measures are adopted with the assistance of drug consumers. This is very explicit. Can you explain us what is the West African Commission on Drugs? All the West African Commission on Drugs aims to mobilize public support and create awareness about the challenge of drug trafficking and drug consumption within the West African region. One of the challenges we are facing in the region is also the issue of data. We often rely on estimates. In 2008, the UNODC estimated at about $1 billion of what of cocaine passed through the region. We are at risk of having narco-states. We are at risk of having countries whose economy may now depend on drug trafficking. For a very long time, we've always considered ourselves as a transit region, that these drugs only just come through and they are taking to Europe, taking to the America, and we don't consume it. But the truth of the matter is that these drugs are now easily accessible on the street. They are cheaper than before. They are within reach within the communities and increasingly being consumed in injecting practices is also on the increase. People injecting drugs within the communities and this comes with a lot of challenges talking about HIV, behavioral practices, risk practices. You talk about hepatitis and this is actually a reality we need to wake up to that about 30% of the traffic drug that passed through the region are consumed locally. They even also led to the formulation of the prior declaration signed by judges of the Pellop countries. It focuses on the health care dimensions of drug policies. The judges representing the various countries of the Portuguese official language in Quinta Egon, the IJLP, gathered at this first international conference about drug policies in the Pellop, aware of the role that the judicial activities in the treatment and resolution of the problems linked to drugs, in all its aspects, present the following considerations and recommendations that in their opinion can positively influence the design and execution of public policies in terms of human drugs and rights. The conference brings several experiences that we consider to be taking into consideration exactly at this last stage in which we are in the finalization of our national strategy on illicit drugs and other addictive substances. We find important subsidies, we solidify some ideas and we consider that this will be extremely valuable for our work. But it is also true that drug wars bring a lot of social costs, a lot of economic costs and finances to the states themselves. Therefore, drug wars themselves and the way it tries to defend a certain ideology has created a paradox, has created a trap, a trap in which we were all captured, in which drug wars have been a failure and a failure from a political point of view. I think we need to have a change in our policy approach. We still believe we can get our way out of drug issues with guns, with law enforcement. It's not only about law enforcement, we should begin to look at the individual development. We should begin to see drug issues as a development issue because if we also look at some of the predisposing factors to drug consumption, at the root are socioeconomic issues. You have issues like unemployment, you have issues like poverty, you have issues like lack of access to education. These are issues that actually need to be addressed. More schools, more health centers, good friendly centers, arm reduction services are not prisons. Distecuting criminals is not enough. You have to take care of the patients. You have to have the health outlook on this. You have to have the community outlook on this, the family outlook. So you have to combine police activities, of course. You have to combine prevention activities, combine education, combine public health attitudes. You have to take care of the patients because putting them in jail just because they consumed once or twice or three times, it's not a solution. You fill up the jails and the thing continues. Unfortunately, we've had a unified voice from Africa in the past that has been a voice in favor of repression. We're hoping that we might actually have some people who are ready to stand up in international meetings, at least to say, you know, more policing is not the solution to everything. At least to say harm reduction means something and has to be part of policy. Thank you.


signalato wusu 버avaldeu fundi fundi tuni tuni tuni tuni Nani sayu SDN dipakasambili. Fukapale, wakashi kasi spika yangu. Pato nga, perikau atuna mishana, kiku yung logo, eh, tako aji ni spika su ji nini ui ni kai tukwo. By the time ni tukwo fukapale mere, ambe ahli completion nya booking, ahli completion mga namba, amba aju na faku to mga ui tukwo ele ticket. So instead of 0753, aka niki mi 0723, nikia kakwa system, inakata, reski a tu. You have five minutes left. Ha, you have too many left to buy a scooter. So how was theram experience? The first time on your run. This promise was also in class but I don't know whether we can make it in pickingнelse. Just name the next two hands. nae, nae, nae, Nae Sidia ni pwa powa sana bai doe Ili pwa ni tuku mempata lili pwa sa anana na bonfire Na juhu na ni miko ni kukreati kawinten tangu lastia April poka mwakao April think for a whole year wagain tuku over 200,000 subscribers Nika isikomba nafan ni ku mzige Spankyu ikiziki zika zi zeptu na pukua naji maw choke do bugina una time na posepen, you know, with the labdons So ni kuna, ni tukuitu likizu kilogo bada yaramandan. Kamu wana people ni terelihams, they're going to post. We've got to, you know, just get off the pressure. Ni pinizike to tattoo. I booked 3 days, I got the 4th day free. I have to see of 1,5 days. So if you wanna book right now is the time. You can use my code, present a hand for an amazing list coming here. Tuliona pala ilu koko hoteli ekipeke pala. Tuliona mazingira ekipeke. Yubi ilikwani decision ni hake medina maybe mkwako kukumbia tunda yoteli. Amai ilikwapia surprise ya kutulona package. Ilikwani surprise kwa ke na kuangu piya. Sababu we told Bonfire to do everything for us. Diyutuone wata tutagulia ni nini. Nowa kata tutagulia, name two paradise hotel. Which is actually here. Just told them I want a nice hotel. O kata pereka. Pakalia ni. I'm telling you because. See yawai is to pray and they will pray here. I'm going to pray a bit. You're happy. So Medina, no manya maza sana. Maybe it's the tuliza ni ni experience yako yam mombasa. Was it the first time you met a mombasa? Diyani. So what was the experience maybe you can share na kina dada pala inyubani? And also Tuliko kwenye beachfront. It was just beautiful. For anyone and my pengina shekwa, name two paradise. Kwanza they have like. Three of my four swimming pools. You can imagine. And then there's a beachfront. Where you can do speedboating. You can do surfing. And it is just amazing. And they have white sandy beaches. And clean. And very clean. And also customer service. We were very amazing. I'm telling you it was a first time experience. It was a first time experience. Kwa kwa sana. It was one of the things that we defend and ride. Kwa hi experience yote is the fact that after walking on a chukuliwa. Fikais diya runa chukuliwa. Na peliwa kwa kwa kote lini. Na kito kapi uki runi na irobu. Na kiliwa na gari kwa kote lini. Pa kwa kwenye. Mombasa kuna mombasa kuna mombasa. Kwa mombasa kuna mombasa. Kwa kwa kwenye kwa beach. Ya pili kuna hina. Mombasa kuna kwa kuchura. Ya tatu kuna mapochopocho. Mbili kwa medina. Ume experience gani hina. Biryani pilau nini. Lili kore na likwisha inaisha. But well pochopocho. Bufu ya pelili weza. Ofko sko ale young couples mba wana look up to nini. Kama favorite couples. Mbili nizo mbi anini nini. Taji brek kama hi, kwa ezaku bond, kama family, kwa ezaku panga mambayaa siri, kama family. Young couples are motivated by my job. Kwa sababu ya lili kwa na so much pressure. Mbili kwa na isi kwa mbana maimu muzike. Sigia pata time tango nini. Mbili kwa na content pressure. Sigia pata time kwa zama spend. And I felt like it was very important. So for anyone, it's good to prioritize your job. Ofko, I can when it comes to spending college time with your family. Easy views. Easy house subscribers. The numbers azitawa yuku I know there is so much pressure and I need to get some money and do this and do that. But I tell you, those 4 days kwa mbili they've just summarized that this whole year we need to create a concept. So I don't regret anything in as much as nizo kwa poteza hela ki dogo, but you never know. It puts you in a very good state of mind mentally relationship nopia boka I can now create more content in the pata pia time you have to strategize in the pata pia time you have to rethink the type of content I want to put out there and the type of interviews I want to do. Presenter Ali miyongoni kwa content creators kwa utuna jivunia tukona unchi na kazi ya kia bai mejewza sana not only Kenya, up and down tangumfungendoa hauja pate le tte miyako nila semiya niyako ya kama family onaisi kwa ambasa sana Ali saia na kesi tena na wewe na heza nile na kazi nili kwa pomeki Jumia kwa part of Ali's success for all those years kwa nida kutuambia sasisi kama taza maajema mashabi kiwenyo are you guys planning to have maybe a one YouTube channel now kama couples to come create content kusita kuja sasakutokia inchi mebunutakia kama pomoja miyemi Yeswe na familia What I know is me have my channels after that Foye afona chanegia nika mili na makena where she just puts all her stuff make up, vlogs asamtaha mi spiwami wana toki kwa nida chanegia kwa ni sisi pikeitu nona tokwa na chanegia niyengi zaku handle muna fukas naio yaya kuna yaki akele moa kidugo na right now she is at 2700 followers she is doing well kumemenshuna wali umezaku re-strategize umezaku brainstorm umezaku asa uko fresh kongangari miyo zatombia ni content gani abona tupangia sisi wata zamaji I'm telling you the kind of content kwa tuwa waji awana I have amazing ideas I reached out to some group of people I just want to put I just want to put out content I just want to sell Kenya internationally people to see a different Kenya than what they normally think I think that is one of the things I want to go into also doing interviews they are commercially viable looking at content for example there is a car made in Kenya no one has ever done a story of that in such kind of content Medina kuna hepe kusimo unge tamani salamfanya kuna youtube account pomoda enu kama halal couples it's like when you look at the channel asimu wana guna patagabaji I just want to put out content kwa muna ngaka kide kwa one and the same I just want to invite those people to sit in my channel to check it out how do you think those people are doing onard channels okay ali how do you think kwa muna kumasa kwa seya Ascapos upto now nikuwan Vp kumukubali alivo, kumakushii edukhovi tu vidogo, vidogo, mabili bizuri na vibhaya, biyatia, kia ni getting to know the whole of her is just an amazing experience getting a prayer, pachanam utumbaya mneza mukha muka atya sa tisha za uzi, kumadi wa muka suwadi teha kutu you know what that means it's very close to my heart kwanza kupatia mutumbaya kutu kutu siji, iski wuku suwadi nenebia midio tu suwadi you know how I work, you live on a choka kazini sidi ya kula, sidi ya tikiwa, sidi ya foa na lalawa naawa but squeeze na fikatu na pata ni siya tikiwa, tayari na pata wuzi siya fuliwa kisha utuna kama kisha ni siya juwa, kama sayi ni siya juwa, kisha utuna tabani na dekia za kule ye na shkul reyani, alhamdullaim for this amazing lady she's just, she's just beautiful Medina alia mikshifu sana na mi broza sema alia mi impact life ya kovipi kama content creator kama mpenzuwake mi faso vozi na maraflingu akimu me I don't have a big brother so to me, ya ya, I'm a dezezo rose so personally, I feel like I can integrate situation nuba do amniu to this but at least I'm going to get it back to me nesha with number one sujuwi we are na kusia dinsachu kakimu suju sayi amniu ali kumalizi ya miyubi tangu muke mke wako kama nido yako wazi ni kitu ambao siwa tutu na tamani kufanya na utachacha bonoza kufanya ni ni asaidu kuguza psa kuheka familiar yako wazi kanyam tandao alafupi apili kona katiflani kuna fanoa kwa lisema katu ma meseji ya kasema wipi takuwaze mi nge tama ni sana unizali eto nipatempe kiyako si di medina li po kia wipi oh li po kia wipi si kudiyo, si musiki li akama yutalipu asi nisi akama yutalipu asi nisi akama yutalipu asi ya chafunguwa ni ni chafunguwa bila bang bata anyway the reason why ni li amo komba na muweka one of the reasons why ni li amo one of them li li amo komba muweki hatara ni kama kainimu kumari DMC kwa nasubili asa kwa nambuwa ali aupo singolo ali ali aupo singolo kiyambia utinamutu hawa mini onesema komba alabdu na toangetu unamutu ngo bacha ni muweke at least wengina wa ishimi ilo punawari bahaddu hawa bahaddu lala rentumia meseja I think I really thank God for the love my fans want to be in Asia and they just want to tell them I love you all right now Uma mention DMC nasubili wawa tuwa na DM kilasapu kilasiku mna share password mna share account medina aneza kwa accessa kwa suameza DM mmpetia furse akurudisha kwa mma message na ya okay na ya I think we imagine some purposes alright alright kumalizia to your fans na bonfire na bonfire na bonfire first of all let me say thank you so much to you kisha ni seme asante sana kwa mashabiki zetu na wangu palika ni chanena kizenta alimutu na chambesha kulaik kwa mendi kushea nsubscribe kwa ni chanena yango aupiti wata maramondya asemina sema asante sana na kupenda sana kuba zairi ni miskuru ni zmungu kwa hatu mba nona kilasiku naisitu kwa maishani mba nona kuba nona kilasiku naisitu kwa maishani na waka maishani naisitu kwa maishani na kuba zairi ni miskuru ni kushi adina miskuru ni miskuru ni miskuru ni kupenda ukupenda miskuru ni asante kika asante asante asante to me.