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Thank you for being as brief as you can be about an issue that I know you are passionate about.

I turn to Ellie Gomersall. Can you answer the question in two parts? First, will you look at the criminal offence in terms of the 16 to 18-year-olds whom you represent? Do you have any concerns there? Secondly, will you talk about the wider implications for over-18s? I know that your organisation also represents them.

My question broadly follows on from Alexander Stewart’s line of questioning. You talked about responses to the consultation on the joint guidance that was published. What sort of response have you had since the guidance was published? Have the trends been the same, with the two trains of thought that you have spoken about, or have you had further responses that have given you cause for consideration?

Thanks very much for that and for taking the opportunity to reinforce your earlier point. Bruce Adamson, do you have any thoughts on that area?

Thanks for that, Bruce. My second area of questioning is on the provision that would make it a criminal offence to make a false statutory declaration or application. I will come to Bruce Adamson first on that, as in his opening remarks he spoke about his worry about the impact that that could have, especially on 16 and 17-year-olds. Could he expand on that and let me know what his concerns are?

I note that in a previous answer Ellie Gomersall spoke about the age of legal responsibility, albeit in another context. I was a member of the committee that took through the bill that became the Age of Criminal Responsibility (Scotland) Act 2019. Given where the country is perhaps trying to go on the criminalisation of children, where does the provision in the bill fit in with that?

I appreciate that response. You touched on the fact that although there is a great deal of support for the bill, there is also a great deal of worry about it, which the committee is obviously hearing about.

The committee as a whole is keen to bring in legislation that makes it as easy as possible for people to live the lives that they want to lead. Do you not feel that the provisions on the criminal offence provide some reassurance to those who are opposed to the bill based on the concerns that have been raised? We have heard from you and other witnesses that anybody who applies for a gender recognition certificate will have already been living as trans for quite some time, so it is a decision that will have been taken a long time ago. Do you not feel that making it a criminal offence for somebody to make a false declaration will provide reassurance to those who have concerns about the bill?

Do the bodies for different sports across the country come to you to seek advice on this issue?

I know that we are short of time, but I think that Joanne Smith wants to come in.

What does the analysis point to or indicate? Even though, as you said, it is not very detailed, has the force come to any conclusions on that analysis?

Over time, have you noticed a marked increase in those absences?

Convener, I was nearly finished, but that last answer leads me to another question, because that is a really good point. I imagine that you and your officers regularly deal with what the rest of us would consider really traumatic experiences. Has there been an increase in those really traumatic experiences? We have heard about the increase in contact from members of the public in relation to mental health issues, and I think that we are going to hear later about some quite disturbing increases in issues that affect children. Is that also on the increase?