Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer everyone to my entry in the register of members’ interests, which states that I am a sitting councillor in East Ayrshire.

The theme of my question has already arisen this morning. There will be tensions in the planning system in balancing the need to address climate change with preserving Scotland’s built heritage. How will that affect our ambitions, and how do we square those two aspects? That is a big question, but I put it out there because it will be one of the major issues that we face in retrofitting our built heritage.

Thank you for that brilliant explanation.

Professor Gibb, does the heat in buildings strategy provide sufficient clarity about the Scottish Government’s approach to multiple-tenure buildings?

My first question is for Bruce Cuthbertson. I know that you love to scrutinise the housing revenue account and how the housing improvement plan fits into that. Locally and nationally, given your role with tenant improvement services, do you fear that tenants are unduly bearing the cost of retrofitting social rented homes?

Thank you for that.

I turn to Aaron Hill for the SFHA perspective. Bruce Cuthbertson and Derek Logie mentioned fuel poverty. To widen the discussion, how can retrofitting and housing for net zero be delivered in a way that is consistent with a just transition?

Quite a few of the questions that I was going to ask have already been answered, so I will change my questioning a little to reflect that. My question is for Stephen Good. We have heard that the burden of costs might fall on owners or social rent tenants, that there is a long payback period and that some measures might not reduce bills for individuals. What opportunities and innovations for a just transition does retrofitting offer to the country?

I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests: I am still a serving councillor on East Renfrewshire Council.

Professor Gibb, you have already alluded to the fact that Niddrie Road is a demonstration project and is in its early stages. Is any cost benefit analysis of the project available so far? We have heard from Chris Morgan about the fuel cost reductions for tenants, but how does the project compare to demolishing and refreshing the stock totally?

Does Elizabeth Leighton have anything to add from the perspective of the Existing Homes Alliance?

Thank you, convener. I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests: I am still a serving councillor in East Ayrshire Council.

There was the McIntosh commission and, after the 2017 elections, the Equality and Human Rights Commission commissioned its report, “Barriers to participation in standing for election to local government in Scotland”, which contained a plethora of recommendations. My question, which is for Laura Hutchison first and then COSLA president Alison Evison, is this: how have all spheres of government and local parties responded to the recommendations? Have you seen any change yet, given that we are a few years beyond 2019?