When exactly will the inquiry into grooming gangs in Scotland begin and when will its terms of reference be released?

Reform UK leader Offord presses First Minister on social housing loophole, whereby thousands of new arrivals from outside Scotland can present as homeless

by Bill Heaney

Reform leader Malcolm Offord has asked the First Minister about “a major problem” with social housing in Scotland—a loophole, whereby thousands of new arrivals from outside Scotland can present as homeless.

And must be found temporary accommodation by councils, which are then forced to place them ahead of local Scots who are already on the waiting list for permanent accommodation.

Mr Offord said he had asked the question last week, “but the First Minister did not seem to recognise that there is any loophole at all”.

He added: “However, the fact remains that there has been a surge in demand for temporary accommodation in Scotland and, in Glasgow alone, 64 per cent of those in temporary accommodation came to the United Kingdom as asylum seekers.

“Surely the First Minister must agree that it is unfair for local Scots on the long waiting list for permanent accommodation to be shunted to the back of the queue in order to give temporary accommodation to new arrivals?

“Does the First Minister not recognise that that is fundamentally a matter of fairness and that Scottish hospitality is being abused by queue jumping?”

The First Minister, John Swinney, replied: “In that question, Malcolm Offord has used language that spreads division in our society. It has to be called out for what it is, and that is exactly what I said last week in relation to the language that Mr Offord used then.

“Our approach to allocation of housing is based on equality for all individuals. Nobody is put “to the back of the queue”, to use the language that Mr Offord has used. We apply the principle that people who are eligible for housing in Scotland should be treated as eligible for housing in Scotland, and we allocate houses accordingly.

Malcolm Offord accused the First Minister of not answering the question – “My question was entirely measured and factual, and I have not had a response—perhaps the First Minister might write to me with one.”

He then switched subjects – “The First Minister will be aware of the distressing incident last year involving a 12-year-old local girl who was arrested and widely vilified for wielding an axe and a knife to fend off a Bulgarian migrant and his sister.

“The legal process that the distressing incident triggered has now concluded, and the sheriff has exonerated the 12-year-old girl.

“The Bulgarian migrant has been found guilty of assaulting the child and of behaving in a threatening and abusive manner, including making sexual remarks to her and three other local girls.

“At the time, Police Scotland hit out at misinformation online, but that information turned out to be true. When Elon Musk asked what kind of Government arrests little girls who try to defend themselves, the First Minister piled in, too, and accused him of spreading misinformation.

“The mother of the child has quite rightly demanded an apology from the police and the First Minister for the branding of her daughter as a liar, right-wing and racist. Now that the case has concluded, will the First Minister take this opportunity to issue such an apology?”

The First Minister, who has promised not to engage overmuch with Mr Offord, told the Reform leader: “The approach that I take on all those matters is to carefully follow the advice that is offered and the quality of information that is available to me.

“At the time of the incident, the information that was available to me, which was provided through Police Scotland, led me to the conclusion that I set out. I will certainly make no apology for taking on Elon Musk, who I do not think is a good-faith actor on these questions.

“Mr Offord is absolutely right that the legal process in the case has concluded. The legal process indicates exactly what Mr Offord has indicated, so there is no reason for me to sustain the points that were put to me at the time in Police Scotland’s statements.

“I of course apologise to the young woman concerned and to her family, because we should all be dealing with the situation as the information presents it.

“I caution Mr Offord on the tack that he is taking. I have seen too many cases in which malevolent right-wing actors have piled in on particular issues to sow division in our society, only to be proved to be completely incorrect.

“There was a case in Stirling in which Police Scotland had to intervene directly to counter the type of rhetoric that Elon Musk was circulating in this case—on that occasion it was being circulated by Tommy Robinson.

“The lesson that we should draw is that we should all be very careful about what we say because if we are not, we will fall into the trap of the right-wing malevolent individuals who are determined to sow division in our society—and I want to have none of that in Scotland.”

Malcolm Offord responded: “There is another lesson to be learned. That unfortunate case in Dundee brings into sharp focus the reality that white working-class girls across the UK have not been believed by the authorities when they have reported sexual abuse.

“That is illustrated by the remarks made at the time by Humza Yousaf, a former First Minister and sitting MSP, who watched the video and immediately passed judgment that …

“That young person has had a significant amount of trauma in her life. I can guarantee that without knowing fully her circumstances.”

“That judgment was made without even meeting her, just by looking at her.

“In light of that sorry saga, I press the First Minister on the state of the grooming gangs inquiry in Scotland, which the Scottish National Party promised shortly before the election. When exactly will it begin and when will its terms of reference be released?”

First Minister John Swinney, Reform UK leader Malcolm Offord, Dorothy Bain KC and her successor as Lord Advocate, Ruth Charteris KC.

The First Minister told MSPs: “The first point that Mr Offord makes is in relation to the reporting of sexual crimes and the actions taken to address sexual crimes against women and girls in our society. I will address that question in general.

“The statistics that are reported regularly, and the discussion that we had yesterday about the record of Dorothy Bain as the Lord Advocate, show that Scotland has a formidable record of taking seriously the complaints of women and girls about sexual abuse and sexual violence. I make it clear to the Parliament that that will remain the case throughout the term of this Government.

“It is vital that, when women and girls have experiences of sexual violence and sexual assault, they have the confidence to report them. It is clear from the conduct and the leadership of the former Lord Advocate—as it will be, I am certain, of the Lord Advocate designate, who will be sworn in at the Court of Session tomorrow—that the same approach is taken in relation to the prosecution of such crimes.

“Indeed, one issue that we are wrestling with in relation to our prison population is due to the fact that substantial numbers of individuals are serving long prison sentences because they have perpetrated sexual crimes of that nature.

“In relation to the grooming gangs inquiry, the Government has established its leadership and work is under way to ensure that the terms of reference are finalised and that the inquiry can start its work at the first available opportunity.”

Top of page picture: View of housing – social and private – across dumbarton from Garshake to Westcliff.