Economic impact studies by BiGGAR Economics for Airbnb, and Frontline Consultants for the Association of Scotland's Self-caterers are discussed in Section G of our Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment which we published in November 2021.

The costs associated with The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2021, which we withdrew in February 2021, are set out in the draft Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment published in December 2020.

The costs associated with The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2022 are set out in our updated Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment which we published in November 2021.

The Scottish Government has not provided additional financial support to local authorities specifically relating to the Covid certification scheme.

We are working closely with Local Authorities, the Health and Safety Executive and Police Scotland to ensure that we are taking a joint approach on the enforcement of regulations and wider workplace health measures. We have committed to £2.9m in funding to support Covid related work carried out by Local Authority Environmental Health and Trading Standards Officers to year end 2021-22. We continue to engage with the Local Authorities to understand how this funding is being used to ensure they have the capacity to support businesses to comply with the regulations and guidance, including the Covid status certification requirements. Local authorities are responsible for prioritising enforcement work within their area, and they are doing so using a risk based and 4 Es approach (Engage, Explain, Encourage and Enforce).

We continue to engage with Local Authorities over this funding, and any potential extensions that may be required.

Information on how many GP surgeries in each NHS board area provide dementia specialist nurse advice services to people with dementia and their families is not held centrally. Health and Social Care Partnerships are responsible for the design and delivery of these services including the deployment of nurse-led services.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05411 on 24 January 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Before the licensing legislation, or any other Government legislation, is laid at the Scottish Parliament, government lawyers carry out robust analysis to ensure that it is competent. For the licensing legislation, that means ensuring that the SSI is made within the parameters and powers of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982.

The licensing SSI also makes modifications to the 1982 Act itself, in order to give effect to the licensing scheme. This too was carefully considered in terms of whether the changes proposed were legally competent.

The tourist services – short-term rental initiative consulted on by the European Commission between September and October 2021 is still at an early stage and further details have not been confirmed. The consultation notes that the general proposal is for regulation, which would be in line with the approach we have set out in our legislation.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05420 on 24 January 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Our regulatory proposals will give local authorities powers to strike a balance between the needs and concerns of their local communities, with the wider economic and tourism benefits of short-term lets. In certain areas, achieving this balance may require a reduction in numbers of whole homes offered for short-term lets and local authorities have been given powers through the planning control area regulations to help manage activity in their area.

We do not have an estimate of how many short-term lets will return to the long-term housing market as this depends on how local authorities use the powers they are being given.

The centrally available information for part (i) is shown in the table below. This shows the number of discharges from acute hospitals where the patient was recorded as having no fixed abode and covers all Local Authorities. Not everyone who has no fixed abode will have an active HL1 application (i.e. be registered homeless with a local authority) and the recording of no fixed abode is likely to be incomplete. The table does not include discharges from psychiatric and maternity hospitals and geriatric long stay facilities.

‎ Table: Discharges from acute hospitals where the patient was recorded as having no fixed abode.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05400 on‎ 24 January 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers