Chamber and committees

Thank you for that data. It is reassuring to hear the raft of requirements.

Peter Drummond and Laura Hughes have indicated that they want to come in.

One thing that comes to my attention when I travel in the islands is the need for affordable housing. As we have said many times, there are so many aspects to that issue. I encounter older people who live in homes that are too big for them and who want to downsize but do not want to leave their communities.

Through the national planning framework 4, we will have housing allocation across Scotland, including the islands. During NPF4 evidence sessions, we have discussed the idea of clustered housing or clachan housing. I get a sense that older people want to downsize but do not want to leave their communities and feel isolated. Is there an opportunity to consider a different model for housing? To pick up the point that Philip Raines made about place making, clustered housing with shared community facilities could push us in a good direction and free up bigger housing for younger people who might want to start families to move in.

What are your thoughts on that, cabinet secretary?

Thanks very much for your thoughts on that.

Are the islands councils fully aware of it? Given how busy they are in their day-to-day work, have they fully taken on board that they have been given that power?

I will move on to the theme of addressing population decline. It is encouraging to hear about measures such as repopulation zones, which aim to increase island populations, but I am aware that not all population growth is equal, given that growth in older demographics can inflate house prices and crowd out young people. If the Government rolls out repopulation zones, will it allow for a nuanced approach such as focusing efforts on increasing the population among 18 to 40-year-olds and taking measures in line with achieving that more specific goal?

Thank you so much for that last contribution—I did not catch your name, because I am joining the meeting remotely. I apologise to everyone for that.

I will continue on the theme of improved outcomes during years 1 and 2. The provisions on additional powers requests established a power for island local authorities to request devolution of specific functions, duties or responsibilities. That was intended to be a key mechanism to empower island councils and communities, yet I have not heard of it being used. Cabinet secretary, are you aware of it being used? Are there barriers that are inhibiting local authorities in using the power?

Professor Sindico began to speak about this topic. The Scottish Parliament information centre briefing talks about the impact of our EU exit, but one large impact that is not mentioned is the loss of horizon funding and capital expenditures infrastructure funding, which has transformed marine infrastructure on islands. What will the Scottish Government do to ensure parity of funding for islands from any new Scottish or UK funding streams?

This may be quick, because I think that we have started to get responses to my question already. How can we address the simultaneous challenges of high production costs, with risks to producing sectors, and the rising cost of food, with risks to food security among low-income groups? Professor Matthews, you mentioned additional income support. Do you have any other thoughts on that?

Thank you for that. You are welcome to expand your answers beyond my questions. I am interested in hearing what would be a proportionate and reasonable quota for the number of greylag geese—let us stick with them—that could be culled each year.

Earlier, you described the process that NatureScot went through over a period of time and then, after five years, it stopped. Now, we have an increase in the number of birds and, using the example of Uist, we want to get that to 2,500 birds. What would we do? How many years would it take to get to that number?