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I welcome Douglas Lumsden to the committee and thank him for the way in which he put forward his constituent’s case. It was very powerful.

I am quite sympathetic to where Mr Lumsden wants to go with this in a general sense, but I would not be inclined to vote for amendment 100 at this stage, because there are quite a number of questions that I—and, I think, the committee as a whole and the Government—would have about it. Would it apply if a person had been detained under mental health legislation? How long ago would that detention have had to take place? What supports would the amendment put in place for people?

Similar to an amendment that I spoke to earlier, I see the principle behind it, about which Mr Lumsden spoke very passionately—no one can deny that, and I would not seek to do so—but I have questions about the effect of the amendment in practice.

Thanks for that update. I know from the presence that you have in North Lanarkshire, where my constituency is, that that is something that you have been working on for a period of time.

I am sorry if my line of questioning is a bit disjointed and does not join up exactly, but please bear with me. This is probably for Caroline O’Connor and John Taylor. What are your thoughts on the issue of interpreters, which has come up in the various committee sessions that we have had on this subject? What is the service provision like around interpreters? A lot of people have told us that there are real concerns in that area. Are there difficulties with it, and how might those be overcome?

John Taylor, do you have anything to add to that? How does your team access interpreters? Is there any difficulty with that or do you feel that you have that provision?

It will be small, and it might already have been answered. Given what the convener has said, panel, if that is the case, please say so.

This is probably for John Taylor, although Caroline O’Connor might be able to respond, too. A question that has come to mind during these evidence sessions is how you actually manage a situation in which asylum seekers are coming from different countries or different regions. Is Mears, or are other organisations, aware of any difficulties in that respect, and how are they managed? I realise that that is a very general question.

Do you have anything to add, Caroline?

Good morning. First, I offer my apologies for attending most of the meeting remotely, via an online connection. The reason for that was significant delays on the Airdrie-Bathgate train line today, which I am sure will be reported on, given the extent of them.

I have a few questions, convener. I hope that you will have some sympathy with my travel woes and allow me to ask them. Will that be all right?

I have just one final question, convener, if that is okay.

I really appreciate that, convener. I apologise if I missed anything and my questions have been answered. If that is the case, please just say so.

My first question is for John Taylor. I know that Mears has been looking at forming a housing association. Are you able to update on any progress around that? How might that impact the work that you do with asylum seekers?

I had another question, but, in the interests of time, that is okay.

That is a very detailed description of some of the services and the way in which they are and can be delivered, and I thank you for that. Do you have any idea of how much asylum seekers and refugees know that they can access those services? Do you feel that they are accessed regularly and that there is a general understanding that they can be accessed? Whether asylum seekers and refugees want to access them is a different issue. Do you think that we can do more to ensure that people understand that they can access that support should they wish to?