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The Scottish Government is satisfied that no further change is required to the legislation in relation to the rights for grandparents to access their grandchildren. The Scottish Government appreciates that grandparents can often play an important and valuable role in a child’s life. Grandparents can currently apply to the court for contact rights. A decision will be made taking account of the child’s views and according to the best interests of the child.

Section 11ZA(3)(f) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act) as inserted by the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 will require the court to have regard to the effect that the order they are deciding whether or not to make might have on the child’s important relationships with other people. This could include grandparents.

Section 11ZA of the 1995 Act is not yet in force as implementation is reliant upon the register of child welfare reporters being established. The Scottish Government has consulted on the register of child welfare reporters and plans to lay regulations in spring 2022 on the register. Once the regulations are in force there would need to be a lead in time for the register to be fully operational. Our indicative timetable for this is April 2023.

The Scottish Government appreciates that grandparents can often play an important and valuable role in a child’s life. Grandparents can currently apply to the court for contact rights. A decision will be made taking account of the child’s views and according to the best interests of the child.

The Scottish Government consulted in 2018 on the review of Part 1 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act). The consultation sought views on whether there should be a presumption in law that grandchildren benefit from contact with their grandparents. Page 56 of the Family Justice Modernisation Strategy which was published on 3 September 2019 sets out why the Scottish Government did not proceed to introduce a presumption that grandchildren benefit from contact with their grandparents. This is available at:

As a result of the consultation the Scottish Government included in the Bill for the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 an amendment to the 1995 Act inserting section 11ZA(3)(f) which will require the court to have regard to the effect that the order they are deciding whether or not to make might have on the child’s important relationships with other people. This could include grandparents.

Section 11ZA of the 1995 Act is not yet in force as implementation is reliant upon the register of child welfare reporters being established. The Scottish Government has consulted on the register of child welfare reporters and plans to lay regulations in spring 2022 on the register. Once the regulations are in force there would need to be a lead in time for the register to be fully operational. Our indicative timetable for this is April 2023.

We held a number of meetings with a range of stakeholders during the parliamentary passage of the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act), which gained Royal Assent on 1 October 2020. This included Grandparents Apart UK and Shared Parenting Scotland who provide support to those seeking contact with their grandchildren.

Section 11ZA(3)(f) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act), as inserted by section 16 of the 2020 Act, introduces additional factors for the court to consider before making an order under section 11 of the 1995 Act. The 1995 Act is the key legislation on parental responsibilities and rights, contact and residence. This includes that the court must consider the effect that an order might have on the child’s important relationships with other people, which could include grandparents.

We have also engaged with Shared Parenting Scotland and Grandparents Apart UK during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A direct comparison of the costs of renting and buying is complicated because a range of factors need to be taken into account. For example, the capital element of a repayment mortgage creates an asset for the owner, which rent does not; conversely, renters will need to provide a smaller deposit than home owners. Other factors that should be included in a comparison are that, unlike a renter, an owner will be liable for costs such as buildings insurance, repairs and maintenance, and LBTT. It is unclear from the Hamptons Report whether any allowance has been made for these factors in their methodology.

In the year to end September 2020, the average 2-bedroom rent in Scotland was £689, [1] as compared with £793 in England. [2] In May 2021, private rental prices rose by an annual 1.3% in Scotland as compared with 1.1% in England. In April 2021, the average house price in Scotland was £160,632, up by an annual 6.3%, while the average house price in England was £268,321, up by annual 8.9%. [3]

We are committed to ensuring that everyone has a warm, comfortable and safe place to live, and to expanding our social and affordable housing stock. Housing to 2040 , Scotland’s vision for housing to 2040, includes a commitment to take action to ensure the housing market operates more fairly across Scotland, providing affordable housing options and choices in all communities.

For the social and private rented sector, we will publish a new draft Rented Sector Strategy, by the end of this year, which will be consulted upon in 2022. The Strategy will be informed by those most affected, that will seek to improve accessibility, affordability and standards across the whole rented sector.

These commitments, builds on the significant reforms already put in place through our 2016 Private Housing Tenancies Act, which provided private renters with a range of new rights and greater security, stability and predictability in their rents. We will also reform Rent Pressure Zones, so that this is a workable tool for local authorities to address high rents in localised areas.

[1] Scottish Government,

[2] ONS,

[3]

The self isolation support grant(SISG) is designed to encourage eligible individuals who have tested positive for Covid 19 to self isolate for the required period to stop onward spread. The SISG will be available for as long as required, subject to budget availability, with no plans at this time to withdraw that support.

The number of people who died of infectious diseases in each of the last five years are shown in the following table. These figures are available on the NRS website up to 2019. Data for 2020 will be published on 17 August 2021. This data can be accessed at:

The Scottish Government has made significant progress in addressing injustices in land ownership, specifically through the 2016 Land Reform Act. However, we recognise that there is more to do and are committed to land reform on an ongoing basis. As set out in our manifesto, we will introduce a new Land Reform bill in the current session.

Everyone has a stake in Scotland’s land and everyone should benefit from Scotland’s land. In September 2017, the Scottish Government published the Scottish Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement, the first of its kind anywhere in the world. Taking a human rights approach, it sets out a vision of a strong and dynamic relationship between Scotland’s land and its people, where our land contributes to a modern and successful country and where land rights and responsibilities are recognised and fulfilled.

We have also committed to double the Scottish Land Fund to £20 million per year by the end of this Parliament to provide further support to communities wishing to acquire assets. We look forward to working with parliament and society to take forward this work together to create a fairer Scotland.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is the UK agency responsible for the approval of both clinical trials in the UK and of marketing authorisations (licences) for new medicinal products.

The MHRA is aware that ivermectin, administered orally, is being studied for safety and efficacy in numerous clinical trials worldwide. This includes an exploratory study being conducted within the UK: . Potential new therapeutic approaches to COVID-19 are being tested through the UK-wide platform trials, including RECOVERY, PRINCIPLE and REMAP CAP. These trials are active in Scotland. The PRINCIPLE study is a UK-wide clinical trial led by the University of Oxford, evaluating potential treatments for COVID-19 including ivermectin.

The Scottish Government is closely monitoring all emerging evidence on the effectiveness of COVID-19 treatments and their clinical effectiveness in particular patient groups to ensure medicines with the greatest impact in treating COVID-19 are available for patients in Scotland.