Speeches by Reid.

“When do you expect the learning from those pilot schemes to be presented?”

“Do you think it would be right to say then that that kind of localised model—certainly the pilots—is not going to be part of your wider work going forward? You are not going to put more into it? You will abandon it?”

“Yes, how are they going?”

“It would be good to get some more information. I have had multiple conversations with some of your officials, who have said that they would follow up, and I never did get that. It would be useful to have more detail on what you are doing specifically in Scotland, and in particular Glasgow, to alleviate some of that pre…”

“Does that mean that you are now stopping all the—”

“How many are—”

“What steps have you taken to have a more equitable distribution, not just between regions but within those regions? For example, Highlands, where we have the Cameron barracks proposal, currently takes zero asylum seekers. Glasgow, a city that is struggling with service provision and a housing crisis, has well over 3,00…”

“You would agree that Glasgow is bearing more of the responsibility than anywhere else, not just in Scotland, but any other local authority. You mentioned the historic reasons why that is the case. Could you be a little bit more explicit about why you think we are in this situation? It is causing huge problems in Glasgo…”

“You mentioned that Cameron barracks was used for Afghan asylum seekers. Was your assumption then that the council would have no objections to housing other asylum seekers, or did you have those conversations prior to the application going in?”

“Can you give us any details on the pipeline that would alleviate some of that pressure on Glasgow? Clearly, if there are seven local authorities in Scotland that have zero asylum seekers and Glasgow has over 50%—you have outlined the vision, do you think you are making rapid enough progress, and are you continuing to s…”

“You do not have a date in mind when you would hope that asylum seekers will arrive in Cameron barracks?”

“You see the argument that it is at a critical point in Glasgow, and that we need to be more urgent in our interventions to alleviate some of this pressure. I mean, over 50%. It might not be at that kind of level in Nottingham, but there needs to be that flexibility in the system. It is not good for the asylum seekers, …”

“I want to turn now to your full dispersal policy of asylum accommodation. Minister, are you aware that over 50% of Scottish asylum seekers are housed in Glasgow?”

“Has there been a significant investment into Cameron barracks prior to the application going in? Are you able to give us any indication of the number?”

“Was that an assumption, or was that based on conversations that you had had with either the Scottish Government or the Highland council?”

“How will that impact on acquiring more larger sites across Scotland? Has Ministry of Defence given you an update on any other potential sites across Scotland?”

“Are you able to give us any insight into the key differences with the devolution of housing? How difficult has it been to secure larger sites in Scotland based on the changes in housing legislation? Has it been trickier? Has it been more convoluted?”

“Yes. Glasgow has more asylum seekers than any other local authority in the UK.”

“Thank you for joining us today, Minister. Are you in a position to give the Committee an update on Cameron barracks in the Highlands?”

“Before the bell went, I was asking about what seems to be a contradiction between this emphasis on a localised approach and a move towards larger sites. How would you explain that?”