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Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 27 November 2024
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Displaying 1909 contributions

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Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

It was on parity.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

I will ask about the new Scots strategy, which Paul O’Kane—I think—asked a question about. There has been debate about how that is working. The strategy seems to use an umbrella term for a lot of groups of people. The committee has not had the opportunity to speak to any Hongkongers. We know that about 166,000 Hongkongers have come to the UK, but a very small number have come to Edinburgh—just a few hundred. I am interested in knowing whether the Scottish Government has analysed why so few Hongkongers want to live, work and stay in Scotland.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

I am still not understanding what the difference is. I just—

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

I have a point to make about the cost recovery factors within the charges. The Scottish Civil Justice Council Secretariat has approved a 9.75 per cent increase in aspects of all tables of fees. The papers that we have received say:

“In arriving at the increase to the charge rate, the Council anticipates that there will be considerable volatility in consumer-based indices over the next few years and that CPI/CPIH are likely to be unreliable measurements after September 2021.”

I do not quite understand why that date is relevant to the rules provision. I want to put on record that I do not quite get it.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

It seems that there is considerable volatility in the consumer-based indices that the table of fees is based on, as set out in schedule 1. I do not think that there is anything that we can do, but I want to put that on record.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

Good morning. I would like to press you on the issue of the new Scots strategy, which Maggie Chapman asked about. Your panel recommended that the strategy should have more teeth, and you talked about wielding the devolved powers of housing, health and social care. What did you mean by that?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

Still on the subject of trafficking and exploitation, you say in the report that we should replace institutional accommodation with community-based living arrangements. However, we have heard evidence from many stakeholders, including Mears, about a lack of housing.

Just to stick with the subject of exploitation, I note that around 600 refugees were subjected to trafficking and exploitation in 2022, and, as you have said, 200 of them were children. However, we are a bit stuck here, because of the housing situation. It is almost as if we are in some cyclical nightmare, in which we cannot get people out of the hotels. Even Mears is saying that it does not have enough properties. What are your comments on that situation and on getting the Scottish Government to move towards community-based integrated living arrangements?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Subordinate Legislation

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

That is very generous, but I will not be doing that today. I just place that on record.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

Ms Harding, you have just answered my next question. There is a concentration of asylum seekers in Glasgow. Does the Scottish Government believe that one of the reasons why local authorities are not taking asylum seekers is that they cannot provide transport, so asylum seekers tend to seek areas in cities that have an infrastructure? What is the Scottish Government doing about that, beyond those issues with the challenges around bus travel?

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Asylum Seekers in Scotland

Meeting date: 20 June 2023

Rachael Hamilton

Thank you for offering to get back to the committee with the number who have moved off the cruise ships. It would be interesting to know how many have moved, as you described, to a variety of accommodation, whether it is a hotel, a private rental or social housing.

I am interested in the number of houses that are becoming available in local authority settings for asylum seekers who have settled refugee status and Ukrainian refugees. How is there parity in the offer of housing to move individuals from hotels or cruise ships to accommodation?