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I want to ask about levels of investment. Which policies are likely to have the greatest impact on child poverty? Given that budgets are tight, where would you prioritise spending?

Those questions are for Claire Telfer, and I should say that I remember meeting Save the Children to discuss its report “‘It would be nice to just feel secure’: Parents’ priorities for the next Scottish Government Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2022-2026”, which lays out where it thinks the impacts will be felt and what the priorities should be. I know that you mention six or seven different issues in your submission, but what would you prioritise and what do you think will make the greatest impact?

Before I start, I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which states that I am a serving councillor on East Lothian Council.

My questions are on preventative work that is possible. Part of your role is to promote local resolution and improve complaints handling across Scotland’s public bodies.

Could you say more about what effect your preventative work, including training, has had on the SPSO’s caseload? I know that the situation has been difficult in the past couple of years, so you could answer with regard to the situation before the pandemic. As we come out of the pandemic, do you see a role for that in reducing the number of complaints that come to you, because that is what we ultimately want to happen? What has happened in the past and what do you see as being the role of training in the future?

The second part of my question leads on from that. Graham Dey asked about consistency in local authorities. When you talk about training opportunities, that is about organisations coming to you. Do you monitor what training the Improvement Service or local authorities provide? If they are coming to you, they are being proactive. Is every local authority doing that? Do you monitor the improvement that they are trying to co-ordinate through training, and how does that co-ordinate with your work?

I refer members to my entry on the register of interests, as I am still a serving councillor for East Lothian Council. My question is directed to George Walker.

One of your statutory objectives, which you have touched on already, has been to protect the interests of homeless people during the pandemic. Can you say a little bit more about how you have fulfilled that objective? You mentioned that there is a bit of concern about the increased number of people staying in temporary accommodation. Can you expand on that?

The key issue that you mentioned in relation to your engagement with the 32 local authorities was that of resource, both financial and in terms of manpower. Will that be an issue in dealing with the current backlog? Is there enough resource? Will that continue to be an issue as we go into next year? It will not just be a case of flicking a switch and getting out of the pandemic; there will be a recovery period.

In your report, you say that you demonstrated that you were an effective public body and you list a number of examples. Would you like to highlight or expand on any of those points? You have touched on a few of them already. Is there any more that you would like to say about what is covered in the report in that respect?

Would retrospective changes be considered again, if the circumstances justified that? Would the approach be the same? I know that it is hard to forecast the future but, if this happened again, would the approach be slightly different? Would this be considered again, going forward?

I refer members to my registered interest as a serving councillor on East Lothian Council.

Good morning, minister and panel. A key thing that stakeholders such as the Scottish Chambers of Commerce and CBRE have raised is that the bill will have retrospective effect. Do you recognise that concern?

The Scottish Government has already introduced financial support measures, including the tenant hardship grant, to support tenants throughout the pandemic, and that support has been gratefully received. Will the Scottish Government provide tenants with any financial help to support their recovery from the pandemic, as we come out of it? Obviously things will not change overnight with one click. Is such support being considered?

Good morning. I refer everyone to my entry in the register of members’ interests as a serving councillor on East Lothian Council.

My question was going to be about investor confidence, but that seems to have been picked up in the previous question. However, the point that John Blackwood made takes us back to what Matt Downie said about waiting to see where things go over the next year or so and letting the market settle down on the back of Covid. Do you want to come back on that, and does anyone else want to come in on the issue of investor confidence? As Willie Coffey has mentioned, there is a balance to be struck in that respect.