Chamber and committees

A three year grant to Community Service Volunteers for its Retired and Senior Volunteers Programme came to its planned and expected conclusion at the end of March. Various discussions have taken place over the last nine months or so at official and ministerial level about the possibility of a further grant, which is not possible under the new arrangements for funding local projects by local authorities.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-17400 on 11 November 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

The concordat with local authorities reinforces the principle that local delivery decisions should be made locally to ensure the delivery of local outcome agreement. Third sector organisations such as Community Service Volunteers can make a contribution to delivering single outcome agreements by engaging with community planning partnerships and local authorities.

If dangerous climate change is to be averted it is imperative that ambitious commitments and actions to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions are agreed at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in Copenhagen in December.

The 80% emissions reduction target in our world-leading Climate Change Bill is consistent with the best available scientific advice on the level of global reductions required to avoid dangerous climate change.

There is no recent research to ascertain the number of properties operating in Edinburgh as holiday lets. However, the Edinburgh and the Lothians Visitor Accommodation Audit 2006 identified 646 self-catering properties in Edinburgh.

The full audit report is available at the VisitScotland website at:

http://www.visitscotland.org/about_us/local_network_offices/edinburgh_and_lothians/tourism_accommodation_audit.htm.

The Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) was introduced in 2004 to give Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) and Local Authorities a minimum standard to aim for in improving housing stock. All social landlords are expected to produce Standard Delivery Plans indicating how they will bring their properties up to the standard by 2015. From April 2008 the Scottish Housing Regulator is responsible, on behalf of the Scottish ministers, for monitoring landlords'' progress towards achieving the SHQS.

Responsibility for enforcing standards in private rented accommodation lies with local authorities. Mandatory landlord registration and licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) set minimum standards for private rented housing and give local authorities a range of enforcement powers to tackle bad landlord practice. We would encourage all councils to use the full range of their powers to tackle the minority of landlords who can give the sector a poor reputation.

From September 2007, the Housing Act (Scotland) 2006 gave tenants in most types of private rented accommodation the right to apply to the Private Rented Housing Panel (PRHP) where they feel that the landlord has not complied with the duty to ensure that the house meets the repairing standard. The PRHP has the power to make Repairing Standard Enforcement Orders, and ultimately rent relief orders, if mediation is not appropriate or fails. Under the 2006 Act councils also have powers to act earlier when a house is falling into poor condition.

The City of Edinburgh Council has confirmed that it does not consider antisocial behaviour amongst tenants of holiday lets to be a widespread problem in the city and that it considers existing powers to tackle noise nuisance sufficient for dealing with disturbances caused by occupants of holiday lets.

However, the Scottish Government is aware of the council''s concerns that the definition of an HMO (house in multiple occupation) may not be sufficiently closely drawn and that in some cases landlords may be evading HMO licensing requirements by claiming that properties are being let on a short-term basis, and that residents have principal residences elsewhere.

We will be considering the options for implementing the HMO provisions in the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 later this year. The issue of short-term lets and what types of accommodation require to be licensed under those provisions will be part of our discussions with stakeholders. However, the Scottish Government has no plans to extend HMO licensing to genuine holiday lets.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-21476 on 21 April 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-21476 on 21 April 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-21476, on 21 April 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.