JOHN Swinney has announced the resources required for Creative Scotland to continue the work of its Open Fund have now been made available.
As part of his first Programme for Government as First Minister - in which 14 bills are set to be delivered - Swinney said Scotland's culture sector was "key to our economy".
As well as undertaking a review of Creative Scotland, he confirmed money was available to ensure the organisation could continue the Open Fund.
Creative Scotland had previously announced the fund would be closed to new applicants at the end of August.
Swimney told the chamber: "We will support Scotland’s culture sector and creative industries, which are key to our economy, our culture and national identity, and we recognise the need for the artistic and creative community to be well supported for the future.
"A review of Creative Scotland will be undertaken to ensure the appropriate approach is in place to meet the needs of the sector and I am pleased to confirm to parliament that the resources required to enable Creative Scotland to continue the work of the Open Fund are now available."
Ali Heather, a writer and presenter, previously told The National that the closure of the Open Fund would have “very grim” consequences for artists in Scotland, while scots singer Iona Fyfe condemned the decision to close the fund, telling the Sunday National that “the constant U-turns and ultimate cuts have left the arts sector in a state of uncertain limbo”.
Some of Scotland’s best-known music acts including Paolo Nutini and Biffy Clyro had also warned Swinney that the country was facing a “cultural catastrophe” due to cuts in arts funding.
'Whole-family support'
Elsewhere in the Programme for Government, Swinney said his goal "is to lift every child in Scotland who is in poverty out of it" adding "we must do more.”
He stressed the need to ensure a “system of whole-family support” is available – adding this must be “easy to access, well-connected and responsive to families’ needs”.
He added: “Over the coming year, we will work with partners to enable greater local flexibility, so that services can be more easily tailored to the needs of the families they support.
"The key objective of the approach we will take forward will be to deliver significant reform of the work of public services to deliver whole-family support extensively across the country."
Swinney announced there would be an investment of "nearly £600 million" this year in affordable homes, including an additional £40m to bring existing homes into affordable use.
He said: “There will be a strong focus on working with partners to enable existing accommodation that is not currently in use to be made available as swiftly as possible to meet the need for housing – ensuring we take every step we can to boost the availability of housing as quickly as we can.
“We will provide a further £100m to support the construction of around 2800 mid-market rent homes.”
He promised his Government would “invest nearly £1 billion a year in affordable, high-quality and funded early learning and childcare” and pledged schools would be supported to reduce the poverty-related attainment gap in “every local authority each year between now and 2026”.
He added the Scottish Government would complete the national rollout of its carer support payment, adding this would “support over 100,000 carers this financial year – including, for the first-time ever, some in full-time education”.
The First Minister also said there would be investment in community-based youth work and to improve careers support so that there is better information on career choices.
Swinney confirmed the Government would bring forward a Natural Environment Bill to support delivery of net zero and biodiversity goals, while climate change legislation that will enable five-year carbon budgets to be set and delivered will be introduced.
He said the Government would seek to “restore at least 10,000 hectares of degraded peatland and create at least 10,000 hectares of woodlands”.
With the Scottish Government due to publish its energy strategy soon, Swinney said: “We will again double our ambitions for renewable energy generation.
“As part of this, we are acting to speed up the planning and consenting regime for renewable energy generation to provide certainty to the market and stimulate private investment.”
He said the Scottish Government would “invest £9m to support Scotland’s manufacturing industries to invest in energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects”.
He told MSPs there must also be “careful stewardship of our oil and gas sector” so that it can still contribute to the country’s economy.
The First Minister added the Scottish Government will conclude the review of its New Build Heat Standard and bring forward a Heat in Buildings Bill which will "set a long-term direction of travel that is deliverable and affordable for households and businesses".
He said: "Through the work of Home Energy Scotland and the support available through our Warmer Homes Scotland scheme, we will take forward measures to ensure we offer practical solutions to encourage energy efficiency and to enable families to stay warm.
"The purpose of the Heat in Buildings Bill must be to enable practical assistance to be made available to households and businesses to support energy efficiency and to improve the quality of heating systems."
The Programme for Government also included plans to set a clear timetable for the delivery of roughly 24,000 additional electric vehicle charge points by 2030 while Swinney pledged to make it easier for people to walk, wheel or cycle through the Active Travel Infrastructure Fund, the National Cycle Network and the People and Place Programme.
On healthcare, the First Minister went on to state that he “backed by £120m of additional funding for NHS boards, we will support continued improvements across a range of mental health services and treatments”.
This includes meeting the target for child and adolescent mental health services for 90% of children and young people to be seen within 18 weeks of referral by December 2025.
In closing his speech, Swinney said: “With good will, and with a relentless focus on delivering for the people of Scotland, I believe the resources available to us can be used to help us eradicate child poverty, build prosperity, improve our public services and play our part in protecting the planet.”
