Hansard

I am pleased to speak once again on support for Ukraine and the delivery of a warm Scots future for its people here in Scotland. As 2023 draws to a close, it is with great sadness that I note that, despite it being a time of year when we might expect to pay homage to fraternity and peace, so many people around the world continue to experience war and violent conflict, and that so many people will be apart from their family and loved ones this year.

We have all been shocked and horrified by the conflict in Gaza and Israel, but we must also remember that it has now been nearly two years since the Russian state’s full invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. The United Nations has reported that civilian casualties in Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion have reached nearly 30,000.

Let me be clear once again that the Scottish Government condemns Russia’s illegal war and offers its unqualified support for Ukrainian sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. That solidarity extends to the Ukrainian people—to those who remain in Ukraine and to the many who have now made Scotland their home. That partnership between the people of Scotland and Ukraine remains as strong today as it was at the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion. That is why it is so important that Scotland’s Parliament reinforces that solidarity in the debate this afternoon and by supporting the motion.

At the outset of the war, the Scottish Government, keen to ensure that Scotland played its role as a good global citizen, welcomed the United Kingdom’s decision to establish the homes for Ukraine scheme to enable Ukrainian nationals and their family members to come to the UK. In order to enable applicants to travel promptly and to eliminate the need for individuals escaping conflict to actively search for sponsors, the Scottish Government opted to act as a sponsor in its own right. We created the Scottish supersponsor scheme—an accessible and secure approach for displaced people from Ukraine to travel to Scotland and the UK.

I take the opportunity once again to thank sincerely all those who have opened their hearts and their homes to displaced Ukrainians fleeing war. The success of the supersponsor scheme and its wider efforts to support displaced people in our communities could not have been achieved without the overwhelming generosity of our constituents the length and breadth of the nation. Since the invasion began, almost 26,300 people, sponsored by an individual in Scotland or by the Scottish Government, have arrived in the UK. Those figures translate to Scotland having offered sanctuary to more displaced people from Ukraine per head of population than any other part of the UK.

It must be said, however, that the people of Scotland have gone beyond offering our new friends from Ukraine somewhere to live. They have worked alongside Government partners, local authorities, charities and third sector bodies to offer displaced people a real home and a place of belonging in our communities.

The Scottish Government is investing more than £100 million in 2023-24 as part of the Ukrainian resettlement programme to ensure that people continue to receive a warm Scots welcome and are supported to rebuild their lives in our communities for as long as they want to call Scotland their home. That builds on the significant funding that was provided in 2022-23 to support our resettlement programme.

Working with our partners in local government and across civic society, we have used that funding to provide a place of sanctuary for our new friends and neighbours from Ukraine that supports them to integrate fully into Scotland.

At this point, I take the time to congratulate everyone who has been involved in Edinburgh’s warm Scots welcome, which is a multi-agency response to the displacement of Ukrainian refugees, on winning the voluntary sector partnership award. I also congratulate all the staff working in the Scottish Government’s Ukraine resettlement directorate for the work that they have done this year. It is fitting that, at the recent civil service awards, that team won the excellence in delivery award. There are many fine civil servants in the Scottish Government, but our Ukraine colleagues are certainly among the best and I am proud to work with them.

We can, and will, continue providing further support with unemployment and the cost of living. Displaced people from Ukraine have the right to work in the UK and to apply for social security support from the day of their arrival. The Scottish Government has worked closely with Skills Development Scotland, the Department for Work and Pensions, the third sector and local authorities to ensure that displaced Ukrainians in Scotland are able to access relevant and appropriate employment, training and social security support.

Local authority teams and employment partnerships are active in every council area, offering bespoke and tailored advice to help displaced people to take advantage of opportunities to engage in economic activity and to immerse themselves in our society. Those opportunities also have the potential to be of real benefit to Scotland, with analysis published by this Government in March highlighting the tangible benefit that the migration of people displaced from Ukraine can have on the Scottish economy.

Beyond the economic opportunities, the Scottish Government has always been clear that our friends from Ukraine should be able to access the full array of the public services and elements of life that are available to everyone in Scotland. Those include the right to access the national health service, an entitlement to primary and secondary school education and to the cost of living support and free tuition that are available to students who are already resident in Scotland.

Listing all the services and opportunities that are available would take a long time, because they are the same services and opportunities that we, along with our partners, work to provide to all people living in Scotland. I thank the many organisations and volunteers who have done so much to help displaced Ukrainians access those services and opportunities.

Alongside that, the Scottish Government has taken bespoke measures in an array of areas to help displaced people settle into life in Scotland. That is why we are working to ensure that displaced people do not have to stay in short-term accommodation for longer than is necessary. We are working intensively with local authority and third sector partners to support everyone into longer-term housing.

One example of our efforts in that area is the £50 million Ukraine longer-term resettlement fund, which aims to bring empty properties belonging to local authorities and registered social landlords, and which would otherwise not have been available for let, back into use. I am delighted to confirm that, to date, a total of 16 capital projects, providing 1,201 homes, have so far received commitments to fund improvement works through the fund at a cost of around £24 million, thus delivering strong value for money and, in many cases, providing a longer-term legacy of social housing for Scotland.

I now turn to the longer-term legacy of our Ukraine resettlement programme. Although the Scottish Government of course wishes Ukraine a speedy victory in the current conflict, the legacy of Scotland’s efforts to integrate the people of Ukraine into our communities is one that we hope will last. That is why the next phase of our support for those from Ukraine is part of our vision to provide a warm Scots future, offering Scotland’s support in the longer term.

In light of that, the Government published its warm Scots future policy position paper in September. That document sets out our five strategic priorities to ensure that people from Ukraine can play active roles in communities across Scotland and can fulfil their potential in work and education.

Beyond the continued focus on the delivery of longer-term housing, which I have already outlined, our warm Scots future strategic priorities include a holistic and rights-based approach to longer-term integration, in line with our new Scots refugee integration strategy. That approach will ensure a concerted effort not only to support the immediate needs of displaced people but to empower them to regain their autonomy and reduce the vulnerabilities caused by displacement.

The upcoming review of English for speakers of other languages, as part of our adult learning strategy, will be utilised to ensure that the unique experiences of displaced people from Ukraine are acknowledged and addressed.

Furthermore, and perhaps most significantly, our holistic approach to enabling displaced people to engage in healthcare, education, employment and our communities aligns with the national trauma training programme and the mental health and wellbeing strategy. That will ensure that we take into account the specific circumstances of each individual’s health, but also the impact that war and the experience of displacement have had on them.

One of our other key strategic priorities in delivering a warm Scots future will be to pursue clarity on routes to settlement, family reunification and repatriation. We have been clear that we want displaced people from Ukraine to be able to make Scotland their home for as long as they need us. However, with immigration being a reserved matter, we are pressing the UK Government for clarity on what will happen as the initial three-year period of homes for Ukraine visas comes to an end in March 2025. Displaced people from Ukraine must not be at risk of becoming destitute if they are unable to return safely to Ukraine after their visa expires. Urgent clarity is needed for Ukrainians on what their options may be, so that they can make informed decisions about where they want to live.

We recognise that many displaced people from Ukraine may opt for voluntary repatriation when it is safe for them to return to Ukraine, and we are clear about the need for support to be in place for them to do so. However, in line with our commitment to deliver a warm Scots future, clarity on visas is also essential to help us to work effectively with our partners across Scotland to plan for on-going integration and to ensure that Scotland can offer the life chances and opportunities that will help our new Scots to fully embrace their roles in our communities. While we press the UK Government for certainty on visas, we will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure that the lived experience of those who are already in our communities is taken into account.

The motion provides the Parliament with an opportunity to restate its unwavering commitment to Ukraine and an opportunity for us to reaffirm once again that those from Ukraine are welcome here. I had the pleasure of attending the inaugural meeting of the new cross-party group on Ukraine, which is another good example of that support. We will be there for those from Ukraine now and into the future, after victory, as they continue to rebuild Ukraine, whether that is through links with our universities or businesses. I sincerely hope that this Parliament will take the opportunity to make clear again our firm commitment to Ukraine and that it will continue to do so in the months and years ahead.

I move,

That the Parliament condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the illegal Russian war against Ukraine; reiterates its firm solidarity with the people and government of Ukraine; pays tribute to the significant contribution made by the organisations, people and communities across Scotland that have opened their hearts and their homes to support Ukrainians to settle in Scotland; welcomes the publication of A Warm Scots Future Policy Position Paper, which outlines the Scottish Government’s strategic approach to transitioning from an emergency response to Russia’s illegal invasion, to a long-term, holistic and rights-based approach that supports the integration of people displaced from Ukraine, so that they have the opportunity to rebuild their lives, play active roles in communities across Scotland, and fulfil their potential in work and education, and declares unequivocally its position that all Ukrainians who have made Scotland their home are welcome for as long as they need.