I hold the general questions. Question 1, Jackson Carlaw. In September, while publicly berating Opposition critics, the education secretary privately commissioned his officials to probe the increasing failure rate in hires. Will the First Minister publish its findings today? Will he publish findings when we have them that the Parliament should be aware of? Roi ames gael y byddol, Sawd Mac, sy'n ddifudio'r fforbu, bitcoin, yn ffordd i ddechrau i'r Cymru, ddych chi'n duwg yr ydy, yn 27 November, ar y tyniadau mywہauau, yr sgwesfaenau sy'n ddifuiddio'i ei ddweud. Roeddwn i ddifudio'r fforbu yn ddim yn llefano yn cymdrifau ar gyfer hawdd, yn defnyddio'r rhai. As always, Presiding Officer, whilst it's not something I encourage, I'll always defend the right of people to express a view if they have the opportunity to do so. I wasn't actually on my feet fast enough, I hadn't realised that was it from the First Minister because I see that she obviously intends to begin this year in the same slippery fashion that she ended the last. It wasn't just Conservatives. It seems to be the whole world that misunderstood what the Cabinet Secretary had to say, so just to take the spin-out of her answer, let's give the facts. In August last year, we learned that the number of students achieving A to C in hires had fallen. Mr Swinney promptly attacked us for daring to suggest this real something might be wrong with his handling of education. Then over Christmas, we learned that he had at the same time asked his officials to find out what's going wrong. Yesterday, in a letter to shadow education secretary Liz Smith, Mr Swinney declared that he doesn't need to explain himself to this Parliament because there's nothing new to say. That's what he had to say in his letter. I mean, I know that education is no longer this Government's number one priority, but doesn't that smack of arrogance even to the First Minister? First Minister. I gently suggest that perhaps Liz Smith should have a go at better explaining things to Jackson Carlaw. Jackson Carlaw has stood up in this chamber and suggested, as the Tories have done over the recess, that Mr Swinney secretly commissioned an analysis of the 2019 exam results. John Swinney has pointed out the fact—I have done it again today—that he informed the Education and Skills Committee on 27 November that he had asked for such ananalysis. Jackson Carlaw should reflect on the premise of the question that he is asking me today. Of course, the Deputy First Minister also informed the committee that, following the analysis, partners have been asked to look at further work to support learning and teaching through a number of actions. Of course, as that work progresses, the outcomes of it will be shared with the committee and with Parliament. It may be that reason that, as I understand it, although Jackson Carlaw can correct me if I am getting this wrong, the Tories withdrew their request for a parliamentary statement this week when that information had been pointed out to them. On wider performance, we know in Scottish education that, yes, there is more work to do, which is why it remains the top priority of this Government. However, we see attainment increasing, so the percentage of school leavers getting a level 5 qualification such as nationals has increased from 71 per cent when we took office to 85, almost 86 per cent now. Also, the numbers getting a higher qualification has increased from less than half to now almost two thirds. Lastly, we see, for the first time ever, more than 30 per cent of pupils achieving at least or more than five passes at a higher level, which is up from just over 20 per cent in 2009. We also see the attainment gap reducing. That is the progress that has been made in Scottish education. It is down to the hard work of teachers, pupils and parents across the country, and it is the progress that we will focus on continuing to make. Adam Carlaw So, spin to the first question, denial to the second, spin and denial to the twin pillars of this Government. Of course, we all pay tribute to the teachers, to the students and to the parents who are working hard, but let's return to the issue at hand. The Education Secretary asked a fair question of his officials. What does the falling pass rate at highers tell us about the health of education in this country? Let me put that question to the First Minister today and give her the opportunity to explain. What does a drop in the pass rate tell us about education? What does a record low in PISA scores tell us about school performance? What does declining school subject choice tell us about her Government's record? The First Minister I have just set out a range of statistics that reflect the real performance of Scottish education. I can understand why Jackson Carlaw chose not to listen to those because he does not suit the argument that he is making. However, let's not gloss over the issue at hand, which, of course, was the subject of his first question to me. He might want to call it spin, but he has stood up in this chamber and repeated an accusation against the deputy First Minister that was made during the recess, which is flatly wrong. I do not think that that is acceptable. I do not think that Jackson Carlaw should get away with that. I think that he should perhaps reflect on that and take the opportunity to apologise for it. We will continue to focus on the progress that is being made. If we look at this year's exam results—in fact, on the day that they were published, the deputy First Minister recognised that there had been a fall in the overall higher pass rate, although it remains very high—we saw generally a strong set of exam results with three quarters of candidates attaining a pass at higher grades A to C. Over a quarter of candidates achieving a grade A at higher grades A, we saw an increase in entries and pass rates across national 5, including a rise in passes for English and a rise in passes for maths. Coupled with the statistics that I gave him in my previous answer, I think that that is a performance that shows improvement. I want to see more improvement, which is why we will go on with the job at hand and leave Jackson Carlaw and the Tories floundering around making baseless accusations. The Deputy First Minister's position is that I am just so misunderstood. I am so misunderstood in fact that journalists, students, teachers and parents all misunderstood what he had to say previously. The issue here is really simple. Clearly there is something wrong with our education system. Parents know it, teachers know it, students know it and in private education secretary knows it, too. The problem is that when it comes to action, we have a First Minister and education secretary more concerned with hiding their record than admitting to it or correcting it. First Minister, 2020 will be the year that this Government's diabolical domestic record and education will come home to roost. A year when we will see an SNP Government that will put its own survival on the light of events before the priorities of the people. Having promised five years ago that education would be her number one priority, is it not time to make it exactly that? The First Minister's position is that the people got the opportunity to cast their verdict on the performance of this Government just a matter of weeks ago and I think that we all know how that ended up. I say to Jackson Carlaw that this is really, really seriously because I think that the only people who have misunderstood are the Scottish Tories. Actually, I am being charitable there because, actually, I think that what the Tories are doing is not misunderstanding but misrepresenting and I think that that is what they should be apologising for. Jackson Carlaw says that the Deputy First Minister, myself, the Government is seeking to, quote, hide our record. Here is what the Deputy First Minister said on the day that the exam results were published. He said, and I am quoting, that there has been a fall in the overall pastry. That does not strike me as trying to hide the matter. He then said that somehow the Deputy First Minister, having denied that fact, commissioned in secret an analysis of why the pastry had fallen. What I have told him today, what the Deputy First Minister told Liz Smith earlier this week, is that he informed the Education and Skills Committee of that on 27 November. Perhaps it is the Scottish Conservatives that need to wake up and pay a bit more attention. This Government will get on the job with the job of improving performance in Scottish education and perhaps Jackson Carlaw needs to think about making a less stuttering start to 2020. On 17 December, the care inspectorate served an improvement notice on South Lanarkshire Council's home care service for Hamilton, Larkhall and Blantyre. Inspectors found hard-working staff feeling overwhelmed, stressed and frustrated. Care users, anxious, frightened and stressed and a service that was chaotic and disorganised. The council must make changes by the end of the month or face the real prospect of the care inspectorate cancelling their service registration. Does the First Minister accept that this situation is entirely without precedent in South Lanarkshire? Can she tell us what will happen to those of our most vulnerable people who depend on those vital home care services if the council's registration is cancelled? I expect the council and it is the council's responsibility to take the actions that have been recommended or instructed to it by the care inspectorate and to make sure that what Richard Leonard has outlined today does not happen. The reason that we have the care inspectorate is to make sure that we have the highest standards of care across the country, and it is important that that system works properly and robustly. The responsibility of the Government is to make sure that we work with councils in the provision of health and social care and that we do that in a much more integrated way than has been the case in the past and that, as best we can, within the resources that we have at our disposal, we properly fund local government services, which is why, in the budget for this financial year, local government budgets saw a real-terms increase. We will continue to work with councils to make sure that they deliver services that elderly people and everybody else across the country have a right to expect. On 20 December, just three days after serving the improvement notice on the Hamilton service, the care inspectorate issued another report, this time into South Lanarkshire council's home care service for Rutherglen and Cambuslang. It was another damning report. Inspectors highlighted practices that they said were unsafe for both service users and care staff. Care users and their families are entitled to hold those who are responsible for the mismanagement of care services to account. First Minister, it has been almost five years since the integration of health and social care, and still the system is not working. This week, Scotland's councils have warned that this Government's cuts have put their budgets at breaking point and put community services at risk. Will the First Minister accept that responsibility lies with councils such as SNP South Lanarkshire, but it also lies with the SNP Government as well? If Richard Leonard had listened to my previous answer, he would have heard me talk about the responsibility of councils and the responsibility of this Government, and our biggest responsibility is to work effectively in partnership. As I said earlier, the reason why we have a care inspectorate is to make sure that we have the highest standards of care across the country. It is right and proper that the care inspectorate looks at service provision and where it considers appropriate and makes recommendations. The clear responsibility of any council is to respond to and address those recommendations, and I would expect SNP South Lanarkshire to do exactly that. In terms of the responsibility of my Government, integration of health and social care is an important reform. It is helping to deliver improvements in the delivery of social care. We are investing significantly more in the way of resource into social care services, and we will continue to make that a priority. Within the confines of a budget that has been reduced over the past decade by a Conservative Government at Westminster, Richard Leonard and his colleagues appear to be content to allow making the big decisions about budgets in Scotland. In this financial year, we have delivered a real-terms increase for local government budgets. Of course, local governments work under pressure. The Government financially works under pressure, but we will continue to work with local councils to make sure that delivery of local services is the priority and has the priority that they deserve. Richard Leonard. Let us fix on responsibility. The Government is responsible for quadrupling the cuts to local government over the course of the past 10 years. Causalers claims are backed up by Audit Scotland. They reported at the end of last year that 19 integration joint boards across Scotland required a financial bail-out. Just over a year ago, we warned that acute pressures on social care services meant that they were reaching breaking point. Now we have care services in the Minister for Older People's own constituency served with an improvement notice. First Minister, is it not time that Scotland had a Government that properly valued care services? Is it not time that Scotland had a Scottish care service properly resourced with consistent standards, compassion for staff and care users, one that meets their needs and respects their rights? First Minister. As I said to Jackson Carlaw, the people in Scotland have very recently had an opportunity to cast a verdict on the performance of this Government, and they did that, and we know the outcome of that. Let us look in detail at local government funding. If we look at the time that this year's budget was set—if we take health out of the equation, because I think that all of us, even the Tories, although their policies do not match their rhetoric, accept that health should be protected—the Scottish Government's resource budget will be 7.8 per cent lower in real terms this year compared to 2013-14. If we look at our funding to local government, we have managed to keep the pressure on local government beneath that figure. We have in relative terms protected local government. Local government budgets have increased in recent years, but because of the deep austerity over the past decade, yes, there has been a reduction over that period of time in local government budgets, but it is less in Scotland than it is in Labour-controlled Wales. Labour does not like this. Over the same period, 6.2 per cent pressure in Scotland is living in a half per cent in Labour-controlled Wales. In a very difficult financial circumstance, this SNP Government is doing more to protect local government than Labour has managed where it has the responsibility. That might help to explain why the people of Scotland cast the verdict that they did cast in December in the general election. We have a couple of constituency supplementaries to first from Alex Cole-Hamilton. Last year, my constituent Malcolm Murher died after losing a stone and a half in a month whilst residing at the Drumbray care home run by City of Edinburgh Council. A social work report raised concerns that he was only being washed once a week in a sink. He had bloated, infected feet and overgrown nails. The home was closed to new admissions. This week, an unannounced visit by the care inspectorate found serious concerns about staff competence, about distribution of medication and treatment of residents. It will be deregistered in February if improvements are not made. Does the First Minister agree that this is symptomatic of a crisis in social care in our country and that our constituents have the right to expect a higher standard of care from public sector homes? First Minister. I certainly agree in part with Alex Cole-Hamilton. I think that what he has described here is completely unacceptable. Yes, I believe that residents of care homes and their families have an absolute right to expect better standards than those that Alex Cole-Hamilton has outlined in the tragic case of Malcolm Murherhead. I do not agree—this is a disagreement that I will express here sincerely—that it is symptomatic to use his words of a wider crisis in social care. Social care is under pressure, as is healthcare, as are public services, because of the austerity. The Labourers are shouting who's fault is that—the architects and the authors of austerity, which are the Tories at Westminster, previously helped by the Liberal Democrats—that's who's fault it is. To escape that, I take a very different view on the future of this Parliament than other parties in this chamber. As I have outlined in detail today, within a very constrained budget, we will continue to take the action that, as best we can, protects health and protects social care. That's what we have done and it is what we will continue to do. Neil Findlay. In October, I raised with the First Minister the case of my constituent who has been waiting on an operation. She has severe neurological pain, has been off work for a very long time and has to take 48 tablets a day to try to alleviate the agony that shoots through her head and face every few seconds. On my question, the Cabinet Secretary for Health wrote to me saying that there is no suggestion of any kind that the delay to the new department of clinical neurosciences has anything to do with the case of your constituent. I quote, My constituent's case would be resolved by NHS Lothian. My constituent's case still has not been resolved by NHS Lothian. She remains in agony, has had her operation cancelled again and has been told by NHS Lothian officials again that this is due to the lack of staff and the lack of theatre space because of the sick kids' neurological centre debacle. Will the First Minister today take this opportunity to speak directly to my constituent who is watching this session and give her some hope that her living hell will end soon? As I always do readily when any individual does not get the standard of care that they have a right to expect on the NHS, I apologise to them and I will do that to your constituent today. As Neil Findlay has said, it was raised before the health secretary wrote to Neil Findlay clearly and his constituent clearly and understandably do not consider that the issue has been resolved. I will therefore ask the health secretary today to look again at the issue and to liaise with NHS Lothian and respond as quickly as possible to Neil Findlay once she has had an opportunity to do so. We will have a short suspension. The Parliament is suspended. We will resume First Minister's questions. Question 3, Patrick Harvie. The Government often quotes the work of Professor Philip Alston, the UN rapporteur on poverty and human rights. His report said that transport should be considered an essential service equivalent to water and electricity, and that the Government should ensure that people living in rural areas are adequately served. We are a long way off that vision at the moment. Since devolution, bus fares have almost doubled, so it is no surprise that passenger numbers are down 15 per cent. Many of Scotland's communities are so poorly served that people feel that they have no choice but to drive, and the situation is getting worse, not better. We can change that. Scottish Green proposals to give councils the power to run local bus services and improve reliability and fares were included in the recent transport bill. What practical help is the Scottish Government giving to our local councils to help them to use those powers? First Minister. We have given local government those powers. It is for local government to decide how they want to use those powers. On any other use of powers, we will always be open to and willing to have a discussion with local government about how we can support them to do that. I very much want to see an increase in people using our bus services, not just in rural parts of the country, although that is particularly important, but across all parts of our country. That is why one of the key commitments in last year's programme for government was the £500 million investment in improving bus infrastructure. Often, Patrick Harvie is right that the barrier is cost, but often it is a lack of convenience and flexibility, so we want to improve that. Through the range of policies that we are undertaking, that is what we are determined to do. Patrick Harvie. That £500 million on infrastructure is welcome, but it has spread over a very long period of time, and it is a fraction of what the Government is spending on new road capacity. We all know that transport in Scotland is unfair, unhealthy, costly and pushing carbon emissions up when they should be coming down. We urgently need to ensure that public transport is always the cheapest and most convenient option for people. With First Group moving out of its UK bus operations, there is a clear immediate opportunity across Scotland, including Glasgow and Aberdeen, to bring those services back into public ownership, but it will not happen without clear proactive support from the Scottish Government. It is time to end the power of the private operators who cherry-pick the profitable routes and instead build a public transport system that works for the public interest. Will the First Minister be bold and ensure that that happens across Scotland, urban and rural alike, so that all communities can be served by a quality integrated transport network that is fit for the 21st century? Of course, we have already taken important action in that regard. The Transport Scotland Act 2019, which Patrick Harvie has already referred to, made important steps in the right direction, giving local government new powers. Alongside that, as I mentioned in my previous answer, we are going to deliver transformational long-term funding for better bus infrastructure. Of course, that is an addition, and that is an important point to the £260 million every year that we currently invest in bus services. However, I absolutely agree that we need to have a convenient, flexible, integrated bus service that is much easier and more convenient for people to use. The bus partnership fund will deliver that step change to improve the offer that buses can make to people. Patronage on our buses has been declining for a long, long time, for my entire lifetime and probably before that, I think, from the 1960s. We need to turn that around and we need to turn that around by making sure that it is affordable, but also making sure that it is convenient and flexible for people to use. That is exactly what, through the legislation and the additional funding, we are determined and very focused on doing. The memorandum of understanding between Heathrow Airport and the Scottish Government supports 40 new long-haul flights, the growth of domestic flights and a £10 discount for every domestic passenger for 20 years. It is a plan for an expansion of the airline industry, and it is fully endorsed by the Scottish Government. Last May, the First Minister promised me that she would review the Scottish Government's support for Heathrow expansion, following the recommendations of the Committee on Climate Change. What was the outcome of that review? We are still reviewing policies right across the Government as part of the process of updating the climate change action plan. In fact, the Cabinet had a discussion on the climate change action plan and the progress that we are making towards that just this week. When we set that out across aviation and across a whole range of the Government's responsibilities, we will set out what we need to do differently. On Heathrow, in particular, I should remind Willie Rennie that Heathrow last came to a vote in the House of Commons. SNP MPs did not vote for it, but we took the view as the Scottish Government, because we are not in control of the decision about a third runway at Heathrow. However, if it is going ahead, Scotland should seek to maximise economic impact and benefit from that. However, the climate emergency, the updated advice from the Committee on Climate Change, our responsibilities not just to meet but to exceed the obligations in the Paris agreement, mean that we need to review all that. That is exactly what the Government is doing. We are doing that with a vigorously open mind. Some of what comes out of that will be challenging. I would bet my life right now that some, hopefully not on the basis of the tenor of his question today, Willie Rennie, but some in this chamber will oppose some of what we have to do to meet our climate change obligations. However, we are absolutely determined that having set those world-leading targets, we have to take the action now to ensure that we can meet them and lead the world by example. Willie Rennie It is my fault, not Mr Rennie's fault, Mr Rennie. I know that they do not want to hear it. We know why. That is months on, First Minister, and you are still reviewing the case of support for Heathrow expansion, still reviewing it. That is urgent. That is a crisis right now. If our MPs have not supported it at Westminster, why is she still supporting Heathrow expansion here in Scotland? Climate change has brought Zambia to the brink of famine. Australia has been burning since September. The ice caps continue to melt, yet the First Minister continues to support Heathrow expansion when COP26 delegates come to Glasgow. Will the First Minister be able to look them in the eye and say that she is doing everything that she can on climate change? The First Minister Yes, that is the answer to that. Let me go back to a really important point here, because unless I am remembering this incorrectly, I do not think that I am, the Liberal Democrats voted for the new climate change act just a matter of weeks ago. That climate change act put a responsibility on the Scottish Government to bring forward an updated climate change plan within six months of draft, within six months of royal assent, by the end of April. That is the process that we are going through right now, to make sure that we come forward with a comprehensive plan of action to meet the targets in that act. That is actually the right and responsible way for a Government determined to tackle climate change to behave. When we come forward with that plan, I hope that Willie Rennie will have the courage of his own convictions. His First Minister's questions, before he reminds me of that, rightly pose questions to me today, but I could equally ask Willie Rennie why, in light of the climate change crisis that we face, his party still opposes things like the workplace parking levy to try to get people out of their cars. All of us across this chamber and across society have big questions to ask of ourselves and to answer, and this Government will not be found wanting. I am not sure that the same can be said of the Opposition when it comes to the detail of the debate. Does the First Minister share my concern that amendment 9 passed at stage 2 of the non-domestic rates Scotland bill by Green, Tory and Labour MSPs, which abolishes uniform non-domestic rates, will lead to the loss of more than £300 million of rates relief to businesses across Scotland each and every year? Does she agree that Parliament should seek to reverse amendment 9 when we get to stage 3 of the bill, as advocated by the Scottish Retail Consortium, Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, Federation of Small Businesses and many others? Yes, I strongly agree with that. I think that the amendment, which would remove uniform business rates, would make it virtually impossible for this Government to continue to provide the support that we currently provide to small businesses. Kenny Gibson has just outlined the breadth and depth of opposition to that amendment. I do not think that anybody in any party in this chamber can claim to be on the side of small businesses the length and breadth of our country if they do not vote to reverse this amendment at the next opportunity, and I hope that members across Parliament will reflect very seriously on that. Jackie Baillie to be filled by Ross Greer. The First Minister may be aware that Ulster, the retail workers union, were campaigning outside the Parliament today to end New Year's Day trading for large stores. Many retail workers in Scotland had to work on 1 January, instead of spending time with their families. This Parliament already has legislation in place covering Christmas and New Year's Day trading, which would stop large stores from opening, but the New Year's Day provisions have not been implemented. Will the First Minister commit today to backing Ulster's calls, consult on New Year's Day trading and give shop workers the festive break that they deserve? I think that shop workers deserve a festive break like the rest of us get the benefit of. I will commit today to looking very carefully at the USDOT campaign. I absolutely understand the motivations that are driving that campaign and to consider what further steps this Government can take to address some of those concerns. When I have had the opportunity to do so, I will be happy to ask the relevant minister to reply in detail to Jackie Baillie. Ross Greer, to be followed by Gillian Martin. The First Minister has been critical of the American Government's escalation of military conflict with Iran, so I would like to ask if she has taken the one measure that is available to the Scottish Government to restrict that escalation. Has the Scottish Government taken any steps to restrict US military use of Presswick airport, which this Government owns on behalf of the Scottish public? Presswick airport operates commercially and at arm's length from the Scottish Government. If it did not do so, we would not be able to keep it open in the way that we have. Of course, we expect Presswick airport to operate ethically as we do any company, and we will continue as a Government to speak up for international law, for human rights, whether in the context of Iran and the recent very worrying developments in Iran or indeed, for that matter, in a wider context. Gillian Martin. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Yesterday, this Parliament voted overwhelmingly to refuse consent to the UK Government's UK withdrawal bill in the EU. If Westminster now, as we expect, will press ahead and legislate in devolved areas without the consent of the Scottish Parliament, I would like to ask the First Minister what the implications for devolution settlement and our democracy are. The refusal of Parliament yesterday to the Westminster withdrawal agreement reflects the opposition—the strong opposition, of course, reaffirmed as recently as a general election in December—of the people of Scotland to Brexit. We have a situation now where the vast majority of people in Scotland do not want Brexit. This Parliament has refused to give its consent to the legislation facilitating Brexit. If we are in a situation in which Gillian Martin is right, sadly, to anticipate that the Westminster Government continues to ride roughshod over the views of this Parliament and the wider Scottish public, what it will be demonstrating is that the UK, as it is currently constituted, cannot accommodate the differing views of people in Scotland. The lesson that I take from that is that people in Scotland deserve the opportunity to choose a different future and to choose to become an independent country and protect our place within the European Union. The First Minister will provide an update on the proposed Glasgow metro rail system that will connect Glasgow airport to the rail network. Improving connectivity for the region is a priority of the Glasgow city region deal to which the Scottish Government has committed £500 million to the total £1.13 billion. We are committed to improving connectivity to Glasgow airport in the 2019 programme for government. We welcomed the Glasgow connectivity commission report and committee to consideration of a Glasgow metro as part of the second strategic transport project review. That review is the largest strategy in transport appraisal for a decade. Work on it is under way, and it will make recommendations in early 2021 on transport interventions that are required to deliver the priorities and outcomes of the new national transport strategy. In addition to that, transport Scotland officials have already committed to working with the relevant local authorities to inform the on-going appraisal of the metro proposal. I thank the First Minister for her answer. The connect connectivity to Glasgow airport has been debated for many years. The current proposal is the most ambitious yet and the best option to provide opportunities for the airport and Paisley. Does the First Minister support the case for a Glasgow metro stopping at the airport and Paisley Gilmour Street and agree that it will have significant benefits not only for the airport but for Paisley, Renfrewshire and the south side of Glasgow? Yes, I have enormous sympathy with the case that the council is putting forward. The MSP for the south side of Glasgow is one of the reasons why we have committed to working constructively with partners to consider those proposals and to consider them carefully and seriously. I recognise the potential that it has to enhance connectivity, including to the airport and to Paisley. That is why the programme for government committed to appraising the scheme in the strategic transport review. That is the right way to proceed. There will undoubtedly also be challenges, which is why it is important that we work closely with local authorities, which is what Transport Scotland has committed to doing. I add my welcome to the fact that progress has been made on this issue, but can the First Minister provide one simple reassurance that her Government is entirely committed that, no matter what the end solution looks like, Glasgow airport will be connected to the city of Glasgow itself? I have already made my views pretty clear on the importance of good and better connectivity to Glasgow airport. I do not think that any responsible Government can stand here and say regardless of what the end solution looks like, that we will go ahead and do something. It is absolutely vital that we go through proper processes. There has not yet been a full business appraisal of the business case that is made for the metro system. That is part of the work that still requires to be done. The Government's position in committing to appraising that as part of the strategic transport review of Transport Scotland agreeing to work with the councils is the best way to take forward the case for that. It is also important to consider how that can be delivered. It is important to say that, although we all—and I certainly understand the merits of a proposal like this—a potential investment of this scale must be subject to normal processes and, in particular, to normal statutory processes as well. First Minister, we have been here before, promises made and people let down. In 2009, the SNP Government cancelled the Glasgow airport rail link. In 2019, the SNP cancelled another Glasgow airport rail link. They now appear to have cancelled the personal rapid transit to Glasgow airport. So when does the First Minister think that she will cancel this latest project? I would say to Neil Bibby that, throughout that period, there have been many opportunities for the people of Glasgow to make their views known on the actions and performance of this Government. The outcome of that has not been particularly pleasant for the Scottish or the Glasgow Labour Party. This is a proposal that has been taken forward by councils in the region. That is the old purpose of the Glasgow city region deal, to ensure that those councils can decide on their priorities and to take them forward. The Government will support them as they do that. I have set out the ways in which we will support them. As we do so, we will continue to work hard to ensure that this Government and this party retain the confidence of the people of Glasgow that was demonstrated again just a few weeks ago. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's responses to reports that local authorities are having to spend millions of pounds from cash reserves in order to balance their budgets. My first response, of course, is to sympathise with local councils who, like this Government, are bearing the brunt of conservative austerity. Local authorities, of course, have a duty to set a balanced budget, and they have to decide how they do that. In 2019-20, the Scottish Government, for its part, provided local Government with a settlement of £11.2 billion. In itself, that was a real-terms increase, but taken together with the flexibility around council tax, local authorities have had access to an additional £602 million, a real-terms funding increase of 3.8 per cent. It is up to individual local authorities to take their own final budgetary decisions and how to utilise this package of funding to deliver the positive outcomes that people across Scotland expect and deserve. All councils, of course, will consider properly the use of any cash reserves where they consider that it is prudent to do so. Alexander Stewart I thank the First Minister for that response. The recent report from the Accounts Commission states that councils face increasing challenges in meeting changing and growing demands for services. Council income is straining to keep pace at a 7.6 per cent decline in real terms since 2013-14. The Scottish Government is piling on additional pressure to councils through priorities in education and home care, which is having a detrimental effect on their finances. First Minister, your Government has been in charge for 12 years, and during that time you have systematically eroded resources that are lifelined to local authorities. So when will you take responsibility to provide councils with the necessary funds that they deserve to support the communities that they represent? First Minister Alexander Stewart, my apology, is nothing if not brave. Local authorities are working under real pressure. That is because of the austerity that has been posed on this Government by Alexander Stewart's party. The Accounts Commission found that local government resource budgets had gone down by around 6 per cent in real terms since 2013. That was the period that they were talking about. Over that same period, the Scottish Government's budget was 7.8 per cent lower in real terms than it had been in 2013 as a direct result of Tory austerity. However, take that 6 per cent figure for local government in Scotland, which shows that in relative terms the Scottish Government has acted to protect local government. However, what is the equivalent of that 6 per cent figure when we look at Tory run England? I do not know whether Alexander Stewart wants to get up again and tell me on the assumption that he does not. The equivalent figure is 22.8 per cent. Real terms reduction in local government funding imposed on English local authorities by a Conservative Government. I will take no lectures from the Tories when it comes to local government funding. Of course, my last point, Presiding Officer, if we had followed the advice of the Scottish Conservatives and given tax cuts to the riches in our society, local government services would be struggling even more. I think that this is one of the many reasons that the Tories lost more than half their seats at the general election. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports that 14,000 applicants missed out on a place at university last year. UKAS data covering 2019 showed that over 35,700 Scottish students were accepted to a UK university and that 94 per cent of Scottish 18-year-olds who applied through UKAS received at least one offer of a place. That is the highest level since 2009. In 2017-18, there was a record high number of Scottish domiciled full-time first-degree entrance to Scottish higher education institutions, which is an increase of nearly 16 per cent since 2006-07. Yng Nghymru. It is the case that it is three years since Audit Scotland told the Government that they have failed to raise the cap on numbers for Scottish domiciled students, studying at Scottish universities in order to meet increased demand. Indeed, the number of would-be students missing out on university has almost doubled under the SNP. For those who do get into university, funding has been cut by £700 per student. Will the First Minister now commit to restore university funding and review the cap on university places to increase and widen access for students from all backgrounds? I will perhaps repeat for Yng Nghymru's benefit the information that I gave him in my first answer. We have seen since 2006-07 a 16 per cent increase in Scottish domiciled full-time first-degree entrance to Scottish higher education institutions. The 2019 figures that he has referred to today in terms of the third highest number of acceptances on record and the numbers not getting a place at university are at the lowest level since 2009. That is the record of this Government, because we are continuing to invest strongly in higher education and support young people to go to university. In terms of student support, we have also raised the HE bursary income threshold from £19,000 to £21,000. We have increased bursary support for the poorest young students from £1,875 a year to £2,000 a year. We have increased bursary support for the poorest independent students in higher education as well. We have introduced the care experienced bursary and removed the age cap on that. All within a budget that the Labour Party has sat by and watched, the Tories have the right to reduce over the past decade. So whether it is on health, whether it is on education, within a constrained budget, this Government is doing the job of delivering the best we can for people across Scotland, which again is probably why people in Scotland express confidence in this Government when they last had the chance to do so. We will move on shortly to members' business in the name of Maurice Corry on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, but we will have a short suspension to allow the gallery to clear and members and ministers to change seats.


Hey, it's Bridget. Welcome to Sunday morning coffee with Bridget.  It is beautiful It's gonna be like 79 today. It's pretty still and it just This feels like summer for me. So I'm quite I'm quite feeling good in the sunshine, but I'm walking early in the morning. It's only like 9 o'clock central time So it's not too high yet. It's perfect But oh my goodness, okay, so I'm walking so you might hear my feet I don't know about maybe not The topic today is Rainbows and unicorns Mm-hmm, so it's pride month and I do celebrate pride month. Yes, I do and I Have been attempting to post something that is aligned and Using the colors every single day and I'm on what it's the ninth today and I've been able to do it every day if you've noticed just subtly and So I don't know I'm like wow, that's quite a challenge I said for myself, which I didn't share with anybody else because I'm like, oh, what if I miss a day, you know And then I'm like, what if so what then just start up again the next day Today I'm wearing my what I refer to as my mermaid shoes. They're very colorful. They got purple and blue Green and yellow on them. So they're missing the orange and the red, but You know, that's okay That's okay. I'll take it So you're the rainbows and unicorns Hmm Kind of feels magic and it feels like variety and it feels like choice I think in The world there is so much diversity and so many options Opportunities just look at all the different kinds of social media platforms or walk into a coffee shop and look at all the flavors That you can choose from while the opportunity for choice is great Wow, have we expanded? Wow, we changed over the course the last however many years. That's awesome Sometimes though with that amount of variety There can also come with this overwhelm and a feeling of pressure to make that decision while you're standing there waiting in line or to To Know what you want Maybe that's more accurate the pressure to know what you want. Are you gonna hear the neighbor's big truck drive by me right now and The pressure to know what you want is hard. We put that on kids the graduating class of 2022 Hey, I shout out to you whether you're graduating from college or high school Whatever whatever your graduation is congratulations. I know it's a big deal Here's been a big deal to get to this place. I have a kid that's graduating also We are doing that on Friday. We'll be going to those ceremonies and it is a big deal it's just very emotional because There's been a long struggle for many to get to that point and for some it's been uncertain Yes, we are one of those families. Yes So collective deep breath sigh of relief now Rainbows and unicorns so rainbows representing the variety lots of different decisions. You can make a lot of choices Also knowing that the flip side of that is pressure and guess what? Just like all those different colors on that rainbow spectrum. There is also a lot of different opinions I mean, I know you're gonna be shocked by that People are actually so willing to give you advice even though they can't seem to live their own lives Kind of ironic isn't it if you step back and actually find the humor in that it might not make you so mad Just so you know, I have found that people who so love you and Great friends and family sure know what they think you should be doing with your life Even when you're old, you know, like me. Well, I'm not old but you know when you're in your late 40s, for example It's like thanks. I think I survived this one. I think I can decide what to do Oh people mean well, but the advice comes and the opinions are cast upon you various colors of our rainbow spectrum, right? Different shades Shade I'm not talking sunglasses And it's weird because it kind of passive-aggressive way that people tell you what they think without telling you If this is my opinion, this is just my perspective. This is just what I think Sometimes people don't even clarify. They just say it like it's fact like their way is the way of the Lord I thought even saying that of course, that's a little dramatic It would be rather fun if people would have to say that when they're giving you an opinion or some advice Here's what I feel Follow me I Can lead you to the promised land by giving you this advice Because I've never walked in your shoes.  Oh, I should use your life as an example Wow, what a great role model you are No, okay, so is that just a little mean? Yeah, that's an example of the passive-aggress Nature of choice That's what comes with all these different decisions and different variations of possibility of opportunity and It's okay Just step back and take it for what it is like they say take it with a grain of salt Maybe we should start adding sugar and then we might feel a little better about that and take it with a little bit of sugar and Just assume how everybody's doing the best they can may mean well, right? So I guess that's an opportunity for you to love them unconditionally And just nod your head and move along. So what about the unicorn piece? What's that about? Rainbow is a unicorn? Well, unicorns have so many diverse meanings nowadays, don't they? Lots of memes out there In that whole unicorn status Let's just begin with the fact that a unicorn represents a horse and a horse is a powerful totem animal For me a horse represents healing and intuition. So therefore healing your spirit So we'll start with that the unicorn piece of it makes it more mythical more magical and more maybe psychic Let's take that slant to this The idea of what is possible Sometimes literally the dreams that we have or the visions that we wish we could have feel more like fantasy than real life possibility Why is that? Maybe it's because some of the things that we engage in on social media, for example over a platform we were using presents to you the Absolute perfect idealized vision of whatever it is Whether it's makeup whether it's body types or shapes clothing Whether it's music or talents or skills business skills Writing skills, whatever it is it presents this like absolute Contrast of the good the bad the best the worst it's just really Very confusing and conflicting, isn't it? When we step into this place where we want to be connected More fully authentically to our self to our soul to our intuition and Lead from that space it can get confusing life can get real confusing because our brains have been on autopilot for so dang long We have been taught and praised based upon how smart we are the kind of grades We get everything external that we have the house the car the kids that all of the stuff That other people can witness and see and then reflect back to us how great we are That's successful. We are because why because we have a great brain because we went to the best school because we Have a good job because we provide for the people around us, right? So isn't that just an exhibition of what you can do for other people and are rewarding the fact that you show Up and do for other people instead of asking the very needed much needed question the magical question about your soul your spirit Which is that unicorn inside of you that shows up and it's like hey Magic, what is your magic? Who are you in relation and in context to the world around you? How are you? How are you? Showing up and engaging with the world. How are you? In this moment in your lifetime Actually stepping in more fully to the wholeness of who you are that doesn't just rely on your brain and the tangible outputs or expressions But it counts on you waking up as an intuitive person as a unicorn not just a horse, but a freaking unicorn And imagining and bringing into fruition, which is what we call manifesting The version of your life that will bring you fulfillment and joy in the moment It's not a guarantee and you won't have pain because pain has a purpose To bring to you the contrast and understanding of the beauty of the simple things of life So that then when the rainbows appear After the rain and the storm passes You can appreciate The options that are laid out before you and not be overwhelmed by it just have gratitude grace appreciation for the perspective without The pressure but the only way you can do that is when you're standing next to your unicorn And in alignment that little That little horn at the top of the unicorn that is about the spine the pranic tube of the spine It's about alignment Alignment and when you are off center Not in alignment with your body your heart your mind and your spirit You're missing something. This is why you're seeking and you're missing and you are Sometimes getting so triggered by other people's advice or even their silly memes It's because you are not in Your center and your alignment and that is the place where then you can see the rainbow options And you can choose from a place of power because you're centered and connected And you can play and have fun with your unicorn Because there'll be more than one So this is Bridgette Thank you so much for listening to sunday morning coffee with Bridgette of rainbows and unicorns today lots of interesting conversation here Also, happy graduation to the class of 2022 And to your parents to your family to those who have supported you along this pathway To get you to where you are at today. We all celebrate with you in this space We celebrate with you So this is Bridgette. Thanks so much for listening. I hope I've inspired your spirit today filled you with hope encouraged you to live your life That's what we're here for after all in our connections every week on sunday Here on above life channel on youtube Thanks for listening


Puja kalafi niwa yu bayiqa niwa na mbunilipi wakasha vanu wakamiaka In goto uwakiku niwa kili wa wakamiaberia, Y playground deo mbunilipi mbunila mbunila Tapei mbunani wo mbunilipi. Tapei mbunili niwa temaoshtana keto kutizu afrika. Naatiri na kutidu niwa sreza Uwakiku niwa kutidu niwa kutidu niwa kutidi wa founded by the Canadiens in the 1950s. These top-class schools provided quality education to children of main workers and businessmen who came not only from Uganda but also neighboring Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, DRC, Burundi, Sudan, among other countries to work in the Kilembe copper mines starting in the 1940s. But in May 2013, the people of Kilembe were robbed of the decades of shine and sparkle of these centers of academic excellence. Rwanyamwamba had poured all its waters into the town leaving the untold damage on its path. Over eight lives were lost and properties worth $54,054 were damaged and swept away by the river. Today, the 743 and 813 pupils who are enrolled in the schools have to cope up with a devastating situation in which they find themselves. All were buildings were swept away and all were documents, some books and the rest, desks and everything. They were all taken by Rwanyamwamba. So we have been here trying for all means to make sure that the schools still exist. Otherwise, when the minister came here, he ordered that this school should be closed. We are still lacking skolastic materials. Our children are still suffering. Some of them do not even receive lunch because Rwanyamwamba had to wash away most of the crops which were grown along the river banks. And these children are suffering a lot. I request that every stakeholder can come and assistance as a resourceful person to mobilize these young ones to go to school, stay in school and then complete at least premareo besk, education level. One of the children that we have here in the Brenda school is sitting in post-chap, whereby we are lacking desks. As you can see, the runners seated down. They think that they are seated down. These are containers that were but came here which they tend to have been put inside. But the tale of Rwanyamwamba's destructive capacity is neither limited in time nor space. Upon clearing with the Kasese district resident commissioner, we then rushed to Mohocha, internal displaced people's camp. It is located approximately 343 kilometers from Kampala, Uganda's capital. The camp is temporarily hosting over 1,000 victims of the Rwanyamwamba floods that hit Kanyangia, Nyamwamba division in 2020. It destroyed property worth 140,000 US dollars. Many residential and commercial facilities were destroyed, yet there is no certainty about the permanent relocation of the victims. Ni baby ya ni batuyambo, but still me yoni is kicking I came to Kim Permanent settlement. Hakuwa no bara tu later ahana waka tu gabire monto ka tu teina maka gatukuraramu kuruungi mama ditu iniba kikutupuraramu. Kakuwa tu tunga a maka gaitu, naito tukabuwa hadisa hazinu tulion tu burabura hakaja centers in mioga o wa noti di beneficiaries. Haizile perish modo wia noti manga di beneficiaries. Ha tia kesuturi bania Uganda rwundi. Kanda kiki kunsa aliza, nibaba batu naga muktunga services in kez. Nosa hangu, tuwaburezu services, betu kanda obiwa kwa kwa gama niba genda koma, nora niba tuwizirahan niba gama niba kulek, ito aba kazi tu genda koma. Nuti chikora mbu sasi, niniyendi hanga liki mani. Kanyangia is a renowned Breitling hub in the Rensori region since time immemorial. Angabati makuikisana niaja, nilimujiwa kwa ganda mbuiwa, nila ganda koma nike mbu m priwa. Tzimikiwa mbu samii mpa knuja kwa mula hozon na mbu mizuna wakama.出alали na hużina kwa m cabeza, ituliaj residentu kwa dirya soka m problema sa lucma, na hihuu en Surfisa tangusuuho kusunaputaka, hila tasa wadikanya h Giving, We have started now a campaign of educating our citizens about the good practices of farming that they should adopt. They should change from the traditional ones and come to the modern ones. For example, the government has started teaching them about pre-planting. That is a forestation. And we have gone ahead by giving them even three tree seedlings so that this exercise can smoothly be done. We hope that by the end of at least two to three years we shall have got some other trees which will start helping us to reduce the speed of water as how it used to be. Then secondly, we have also tried to teach them as a method of farming like terracing. When rain waters come in higher volumes, those terraces can try to reduce the speed of those waters which would be running from the mountains up to the valley of river Nyamaama. In so doing, we hope that we shall end up carving down the situation of the river getting mud. We hope that maybe the culture which is in the people of cutting the trees in search for food and the school fees can be reduced. In so doing, we shall have solved the problem of tree cutting. Several research studies have been carried out about Nyamaama among other flood rivers in the district. We have the October, December season which I just called October season. We also have May, rather February May season which I just called May season. If the extreme rainfall takes place and occurs during the October season, it means that it would occur mostly mid downstream. And of course rainfall which is mid downstream intensively does not cause an intense flood because the intensity is caused by where the river comes from, so from upstream. So if it happens that at the time of this intense rainfall, it is during the May season or it occurs upstream, then we can expect an intense flood. Research has also been conducted on the contribution of human activities to the recurrent flash floods. Recomendations have also been made. People are looking for food. They are planting crops for food at the household level. The strongest strategy would be to go nature-based solutions. And some of the practices or measures under nature-based solution could be apiculture. Because if people are keeping bees and producing honey and other products, then they can use the money they generate from apiculture to buy the food. Kasisa district has a disaster risk management committee. In spite of the financial difficulties that it is facing, it is working hand in hand with various stakeholders to contain the floods and come to the victims rescue as well. We have encouraged some counties to identify evacuation centers. In the case a disaster happens, in the case of a flood in your area, we would not want to see people or the affected persons to go to a school, a health facility. We should identify just a piece of land when this happens, you can quickly a ferry or evacuate people. Unfortunately, we do not have money or funds to address the issues of the disaster. Right from the end, what has been done as a district as part of the innovation is to consider this in a mature manner. Having lived through this repeatedly, the victims have clear ideas of what they think can be done to address the challenges they are facing. It is the government to make sure that they are working tooth and nail to control Riva Nyamamba. Then secondly is the ministry to see that really the school is re-arriokated from this valley, which is on a risk at any time. When the river overflows, again these buildings can be destroyed. Some non-government organizations are also involved in disaster risk management in Uganda. They have put in place a number of measures to address the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation in Uganda and believe that these will yield positive results. Now is to ensure that we reach out to the community through our community volunteers that were trained by Uganda Red Cross and ensure that they have the capacity to respond. Because we already developed a DPP by the district, the districts are in position now to support all other six stakeholders within the districts. We have a community action plan. This action plan supports the community to ensure that they identify areas where disaster always strikes. For instance, they know that in this area, this parish, there is always flooding. So they always know how to prevent it during the time of flooding. Kilimbi will forever have a special place in my heart. But flashbacks of the beautiful childhood memories I've kept for decades now contrast so sharply with the sight of a near-ghost suburb I've just visited. It is a tale of survival in a faded relationship between the river and the people that needs urgent mending.


Hello there, my beautiful internet friends. Welcome back to my channel. Thanks for joining me here today for a quick fireside chat, except that we aren't by a fire, but I feel like that's the kind of chat that this is gonna be. I haven't recorded anything in days. I haven't picked up a camera and talked to you guys about anything because I got this idea in my head. I started telling myself when all of this pandemic stuff started that what people need, what the people need is happy joyful, friendly, sunshine and butterflies, silly, non-serious content. That's what people need and if I need to put that out, I need to give people a break from the rest of the world and that is what I want to do.  I have not been in a place where I was any of those things. I've been having a hard time and so I've just been quiet and waiting for my hard time to pass.  I go through that mental circle quite often. It's been something I've dealt with my whole life, this idea of if I'm not happy or having a good time or at least able to pretend for other people then I don't really have much of a place or purpose or use which isn't true, but it is what I feel sometimes. And I was reminded a couple days ago, I can guess last night actually, that that's never what's helped me. Like people being happy and joyful 24-7 and upbeat constantly is not ever what has helped me really feel better. It's never ever what has helped me heal. Yes, it's great to have like outlets where things aren't serious and aren't heavy, but as far as actually feeling better, actually healing, actually getting to a better place, that's never helped me. What's helped me is people sitting with me in things being hard.  It's people who have been authentic back with me and shared their stories shared where they honestly are at. That's what's actually helped me get through things. So I don't know where I get this idea that what the people need, what everyone around me needs, what anyone needs is just happiness and joy during a very difficult time in our world. So the reason I wanted to make this video and talk to you is because I wonder that many of us aren't feeling a similar way. Everyone's having a hard time and those of us who are people-pleasers or who are helpers or advocates or the person that everyone goes to or the strong one or whatever it is, I think we all have a tendency to think that we have to be something for other people. We have to be a certain version of ourselves, a palatable version of ourselves and right now everything is hard and I think it's affecting everybody.   Let's just end that sentence there. But also, I think authenticity is very healing. I think it is an incredible tool. It's a very challenging one for me and for probably you too for all of us to bear our souls and let people into what we're really feeling, to what we're really experiencing, to what's really going on. But now that we're at a point in the world where, oh, you know, everybody is affected by what's happening. Everyone is feeling off to some extent. There's, I don't think that there's a person who is not affected by what is happening in our world right now in some way and that's so weird. It's so weird that no one is okay. I mean, like I'm sure there are many people who are doing just fine, but no one is not feeling the discomfort of what's going on right now. So with that being said, I wonder that maybe the best thing that we can do for each other in some moments is to share how we're really feeling, to be real with each other, to be real with your mom or your dad or your sibling or your friend or the person you always talk to or the world online or whatever it is and let them know what you're really feeling, what you're really experiencing because one of the most powerful things in the world is to feel like you're not alone, to feel like you're not the only one feeling something and one of the best ways we can do that is by speaking it out loud.  I don't have to do that 24-7. I don't have to do that here. I don't have to do that with my family or my friends.  That's an invitation to other people to say I'm having a hard time too. Things aren't super easy, and while that isn't a solution, it is a start. It is bringing us closer together and feeling less alone and loneliness is as often felt like death to me when you feel like you're isolated and you're the only one experiencing things. And there's a lot of people isolated right now and feeling like they might be the only person feeling the way that they are feeling because it's easy for our minds to go there. So this was a bit rambling, I feel like, I always feel like I'm rambling quite a bit, but I just wanted to let you know that I am not super okay. Things are weird, things are uncomfortable. I don't know how to handle it necessarily. I don't have the answers for everything. I'm doing my best to get through things in a healthy manner and do the things I need to do to get through each day and keep my mental health in a reasonable place, but things are so uncertain that it's unnerving. I'm scared for people. And that's okay. It's a scary time. So if you're not okay, I am inviting you to sit with me because a lot of people aren't okay right now and it's all right if you're feeling weird or scared or anxious or uncertain because that's the time that we're in and you're not the only person feeling that way. So if I may invite you to sit alongside me virtually and it's okay that we both might not be doing the best right now. And that's all that I can offer you or me or anyone is just honestly where I am. So I hope you're doing okay. I hope you're hanging in there. If you're not, I get it. But we will find a way to get through this together. We'll find a way to support each other. We'll find a way to recover when it's over. I'm thinking about you guys. You all are very heavy on my mind and my heart in a good way. I am wishing good things for all of you and that you don't feel isolated alone, but I know that so many people do. If I can say so, I see you and I feel many of the same things. So with that, I'm gonna get back to work because I have things I need to do. But I love you guys. I am thinking about you. You are not alone. I promise you you are not alone and I will see you in the next video. Bye guys. So my cat comes when he's called. Louis, come here. There he is. Hi, buddy. I got a big cat. If you've been on my channel for a little while, you may have seen glimpses of this beautiful beast, but he's pretty elusive, but he felt like a cuddle today. So his tail is at least gonna join us.