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While the powers to take meaningful action sit with the UK Government, the Scottish Government is doing all it can to support non-domestic energy consumers with high energy bills.

Our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) has added a Community Buildings Fund which supports communities and other eligible organisations to improve the heating systems in their buildings and reduce energy bills. This includes funding up to a maximum of £80,000 and includes energy efficiency measures, zero emissions heat and also small-scale generation where there is a clear benefit to the community organisation.

Additionally, the First Minister chaired two energy summits last year attended by energy suppliers, advice agencies and third sector representatives, and which discussed collaborative actions to support non-domestic consumers with energy costs.

We will continue to work with partners to identify what more we can do within the powers available to us to mitigate the impact of high energy costs upon non-domestic consumers including community organisations.

There are no plans to extend the contract of MS Ambition beyond 31 March 2023.

The use of MS Ambition was always intended to be a temporary measure and the contact will end on 31 March. Our Priority now is on moving people safely from the ship and towards longer-term accommodation. As part of the joint Glasgow City Council-Scottish Government ‘Disembarkation Strategy’, the council is leading a regional approach with neighbouring authorities to maximise the number of suitable volunteer hosts and social housing opportunities for guests on board. Where a guest refuses a host or social housing offer or where there is no suitable alternative they will be allocated further welcome accommodation before the closure of MS Ambition. However, this may be in a different part of Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14517 on 7 February 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Scottish Government remains committed to the removal of fees associated with instrumental music tuition so income is not a barrier to children and young people taking up an instrument. Access to instrumental music tuition is for local authorities to determine depending on local circumstances and priorities.

Councils are autonomous and it is their responsibility to agree their annual budgets taking into account their statutory duties and national and local priorities.

The significant cut by the UK Government in support for businesses with their energy costs beyond March is very concerning, particularly for the more vulnerable sectors.

Scottish ministers wrote to the UK Government at the end of last year to express our disappointment at the lack of opportunity we were given to engage in the review of the Energy Bills Relief Scheme, and to stress that any continued support should be aimed at those businesses and sectors who need it the most.

We will continue to work with stakeholders to analyse the impact of this reduced level in support upon businesses and to raise our concerns with the UK Government at every opportunity.

The rail peak-fares pilot will apply to the whole Scottish rail network for a six month period, during the next financial year.

Work on the precise methodology and design is underway with Transport Scotland officials working closely with Scottish Rail Holdings and ScotRail to derive maximum benefit for this scheme.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14172 on 31 January 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Careful consideration is being given to the call for a public inquiry, and the Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs will respond to the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee’s correspondence on this matter in due course.

In November the Scottish Government began a data reconciliation project with the aim of gathering detailed case-level updates on the progress and outcomes of property checks by Local Authorities for the Expressions of Interest from volunteer hosts. This data was collected ahead of the launch of the Scottish Government’s Offers of Accommodation scheme and is intended to provide a baseline data set for the property matching app being developed. The returns will be analysed and published in the monthly Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme in Scotland statistics series, as part of our commitment to data transparency.