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I might have misunderstood your question. I was saying that I will send you a copy of the letter, and I will do that timeously. Are you asking me about the issue that the deputy convener brought up?

For example, someone might come into the country via Glasgow and then get a job in Aberdeen, say, or go to university elsewhere. Getting the data is kind of difficult, because we are talking about what happens in normal life.

No matter how keen I or other ministers might be for that to remain the case, it would be difficult for us to do that in the bill. After all, it is up to the UK Government to sign the treaties. It would be impossible for us to extend those rights to a country that the UK Government had decided not to have a treaty with any more.

I agree with your second option.

Again, it is a small number of people. Looking at it logically, we would probably say that most people, when they come into the country, would go into the main urban settlements in Scotland, and those authorities could probably cope with the demand. It is difficult for us to get that data because, when someone comes into the country, they can move as they like. They might arrive in Glasgow but end up living and working in Birmingham or London, and we do not tend to keep data on that. However, in order to give you total clarity, I will bring in Iain Hockenhull, who might be able to give you some detail on the data that we hold.

Yes.

Currently, that is how we all put our names forward, and I am comfortable with the process. With all the checks and balances that local authorities do when people put their names forward for election, we should be in a safe place with that. However, as I said when I answered your second question, if people have issues with it, that might be something that we can look at. We would need to investigate that to see whether it is a problem.

I will just double check with my officials. [Interruption.] Yes, it will be.

I am sorry if I sound as though I am repeating myself, but it comes down to the limited number of individuals involved. Consider the general population and how many people put their names forward to local authorities, and then apply that to a part of the community where a limited number of people would proceed. An even tinier number of people would be affected should there be any discrepancies and there is a by-election because someone has put their name forward when they should not have.

I am not saying that that is impossible but, if I were a betting man, I would not be betting on the chances of that happening. I am not saying that it could not happen; it could in extreme cases, but the numbers are such that there would be very few people to whom that would apply. On the whole, compared to by-elections that currently take place in local authorities, I do not think that the number will change to a great degree.

To give you more detail and make you feel even better, I will bring in Iain Hockenhull.

Indeed—if we ended up in a place where I do not think that we are going to end up.