:00:23. > :00:28.Parliament at Holyrood, where MSP's have been talking referendum. What
:00:29. > :00:31.else is new, and yet you ask. They were discussing the content of the
:00:31. > :00:34.referendum, they were taking evidence from the campaign teams on
:00:34. > :00:40.the rules and regulations that will have on that referendum. There will
:00:40. > :00:44.be more about content on the next programme, which is the questions
:00:44. > :00:54.for the First Minister. In the chair today, presiding, will be John
:00:54. > :00:57.
:00:57. > :01:01.Scott. Let's cross to the chamber. General questions are still underway
:01:01. > :01:06.and coming to an end before they moved to First Minister's Questions.
:01:07. > :01:10.John Scott in the chair. He had been due to ask a question today.
:01:10. > :01:18.Normally, members who can't ask a question have to provide an excuse,
:01:18. > :01:23.an explanation, well, John Scott's expiration is foolproof. He can't be
:01:23. > :01:30.asking questions and in the chair at the same time. A question be in and
:01:30. > :01:35.sold on screening for pregnant women at the moment. He is outlining the
:01:35. > :01:41.Government's position on that issue. Could be another question yet or we
:01:41. > :01:50.could move straight to First Minister's Questions. We now move to
:01:50. > :01:54.question one. First Minister, what engagements do you have planned for
:01:54. > :02:00.the rest of the day? To take forward the Government's programme for
:02:00. > :02:04.Scotland. Does the First Minister think that George Osborne has cut
:02:04. > :02:10.corporation tax enough honesty of urging the chance to go further?
:02:10. > :02:13.George Osborne is following in the footsteps of Gordon Brown, who as
:02:13. > :02:20.Chancellor cut corporation tax. The Scottish Government have modelled
:02:20. > :02:29.the results of corporation tax rates in Scotland 3% below that of the UK.
:02:29. > :02:35.The results show that 27,000 jobs and an increase of GDP of 1% has
:02:35. > :02:41.happened. I think we should set a competitive rate and then collect
:02:41. > :02:43.the corporation tax. The policy of successive UK governments is to set
:02:43. > :02:51.the corporation tax rate and then not collected. It seems a very
:02:51. > :02:59.strange thing to do. I think that answer sounded like one of Mike
:02:59. > :03:04.Russell's bus trips from Campbeltown. Of course, Gordon Brown
:03:04. > :03:09.did indeed say he would cut corporation tax when it could be
:03:09. > :03:14.shown that we could afford it. The differences, Alex Salmond says if we
:03:14. > :03:20.were independent now, he would cut corporation tax three points lower
:03:20. > :03:24.than George Osborne, whether it makes sense or not. However much
:03:24. > :03:28.George Osborne cuts taxes for his mates in banking, Alex Salmond would
:03:28. > :03:33.cut its father. However deep George Osborne could be seen in the court
:03:33. > :03:39.-- pockets of corporate greed, Alex Salmond would be that bit deeper. He
:03:39. > :03:49.is saying to Google, Amazon, to Starbucks, anyone who wants to evade
:03:49. > :03:50.
:03:50. > :03:53.tax, come to Scotland, there will be less tax to evade. If you would cut
:03:53. > :03:57.corporation tax three points lower than what other -- than whatever
:03:57. > :04:07.George Osborne sets, doesn't it follow that he would have to cut
:04:07. > :04:11.schools and hospitals deeper than George Osborne? Can I introduce a
:04:11. > :04:15.connection to Johann Lamont. Gordon Brown didn't say he would cut
:04:15. > :04:19.corporation tax, he did it. He boasted about doing it and said it
:04:19. > :04:25.was one of the great achievements of his term as Chancellor of the. I
:04:25. > :04:28.mention this because this doesn't put Johann Lamont in a strong
:04:28. > :04:33.position to complain about the policy of corporation tax when
:04:33. > :04:39.Gordon Brown as Chancellor did that in office. Secondly, she should have
:04:39. > :04:41.regard to my first answer. I thought and I commit whereby you had a 3%
:04:41. > :04:47.differential rate of corporation tax for Scotland and the rest of the UK
:04:47. > :04:53.was good for Scotland cos we had analysed it and said it would take
:04:53. > :04:56.27,000 jobs, an increase of GDP, over the medium-term. It seemed to
:04:56. > :05:02.me that the task was to set a competitive rate of corporation tax
:05:02. > :05:05.and collected. I know this will be a surprise to Johann Lamont, but the
:05:05. > :05:09.noncollection of corporation tax across a range of companies didn't
:05:09. > :05:15.start under George Osborne. It started when the Labour Party were
:05:15. > :05:18.in Government. I think our policy of setting a competitive rate of
:05:18. > :05:21.corporation tax and then collecting it is substantially superior to the
:05:21. > :05:31.Labour and Tory policy of setting a rate of corporation tax and
:05:31. > :05:32.
:05:32. > :05:36.forgetting to collected from companies. I think we have come to
:05:36. > :05:40.any strange path when the First Minister imagines he is in a strong
:05:40. > :05:45.position on this question, given his response to what I asked him. If he
:05:45. > :05:50.were on a strong position, perhaps we can question who agrees with the
:05:50. > :05:55.First Minister 's corporation tax policy. We know he agrees with it,
:05:55. > :06:03.and we assumed by the silence that his backbenchers also agree with it.
:06:03. > :06:09.Of course. The only place that appears never to be any debate, of
:06:09. > :06:15.course, is in the SNP backbenchers. However, we know that not Scottish
:06:16. > :06:20.business and not the unions are in support. Not CB I Scotland BS TUC.
:06:20. > :06:28.Not the nation's accountants. This week, not the Scottish Council for
:06:28. > :06:34.that element and industry. Not even the chair of the Yes campaign. You
:06:34. > :06:41.will be gone to know he has one supporter. Tax exile, Gemma called.
:06:41. > :06:47.-- Jim McColl. Does he agree with his one supporter that an
:06:47. > :06:51.independent Scotland capital gains tax should be abolished? To connect
:06:51. > :06:55.Johann Lamont on the report, I would refer to page 22, which points out
:06:55. > :07:02.that it will rate of corporation tax could have a positive effect on
:07:02. > :07:06.attracting investment to Scotland. If it did have a positive effect in
:07:06. > :07:12.attracting investment for Scotland, is as the Scottish Government
:07:12. > :07:17.analysed, it would take 27,000 jobs in Scotland, if over the medium term
:07:17. > :07:22.it would increase Scottish GDP, then presumably the Labour Party wouldn't
:07:23. > :07:27.oppose it on that basis. They wouldn't seriously oppose creating
:07:27. > :07:32.27,000 extra jobs in Scotland. They wouldn't seriously oppose increasing
:07:32. > :07:40.Scottish GDP. If these things are correct, this is a substantially
:07:40. > :07:46.good policy. Especially since the Labour Chancellor implemented in
:07:46. > :07:54.corporation tax in office. As for the attack on Scotland's leading job
:07:54. > :08:04.creator, the Labour Party and the No campaign are registered to attacking
:08:04. > :08:05.
:08:05. > :08:10.seedier staggers in job creation and -- attacking job creators, it shows
:08:10. > :08:16.what has happened to their campaign or the last few weeks. Probably most
:08:16. > :08:21.important word there was if. The First Minister calls and defends his
:08:21. > :08:31.own figures that some of us might not think applies much to scrutiny.
:08:31. > :08:33.
:08:33. > :08:36.The fact of the matter is that the ten Mac one -- that the SCDI... We
:08:36. > :08:44.know that the First Minister things of himself as a talented economist.
:08:44. > :08:49.Not just that, he likes quoting really economists. How many times as
:08:49. > :08:55.he told this chamber about his own adviser and all the Nobel prizes he
:08:55. > :09:01.has one? What is his advisers say about this policy question mark just
:09:01. > :09:05.a month ago, he said, and I quote, some of you have been told that
:09:05. > :09:15.morning tax rates for corporations will lead to more investment. That
:09:15. > :09:16.
:09:16. > :09:26.fact is not true. It is just a gift to the corporations, increasing
:09:26. > :09:27.
:09:27. > :09:30.inequality in our society. So, I agree with the Nobel Prize winning
:09:30. > :09:36.adviser and the businesses, the unions, the professionals, they all
:09:36. > :09:42.say the First Minister is wrong. Can the First Minister tell us who is
:09:42. > :09:50.right? I can't believe the SNP backbenchers are calling the name
:09:50. > :09:57.Gordon Brown, when I am telling them that his own economic adviser...
:09:57. > :10:02.Order. A little bit of calm, please. His own adviser said it was wrong.
:10:02. > :10:09.Can the First Minister tell us who is right? Isn't the First Minister,
:10:09. > :10:19.the ex-RBS economist and renowned adviser to Fred Goodwin, or is it
:10:19. > :10:20.
:10:20. > :10:23.his noble laureate, his economic adviser, who says he is wrong?
:10:23. > :10:28.would point out that Johann Lamont can't divorce herself from Gordon
:10:28. > :10:34.Brown, because he is now the leader of the Labour No campaign in
:10:34. > :10:44.Scotland. That is separate of course from the Tory and Labour No campaign
:10:44. > :10:44.
:10:44. > :10:49.led by Alistair Darling. I'm delighted to know... My economic
:10:49. > :10:51.adviser has pointed out that the vast disparity in income levels in
:10:52. > :10:57.the UK under the Labour party are not an efficient way to run an
:10:57. > :11:00.economy. It is part of the official -- the Fiscal Commission has
:11:00. > :11:06.recommended Stelling postindependence. I'm delighted
:11:06. > :11:12.Johann Lamont is going to accept the wisdom of my advisor and the other
:11:12. > :11:16.Nobel laureates on my committee. The purpose of a competitive rate is to
:11:16. > :11:20.set a competitive rates to benefit the Scottish economy and collect
:11:20. > :11:23.corporations -- corporation tax. That is a better position than the
:11:23. > :11:28.position under the Labour Party and no George Osborne, we're corporation
:11:29. > :11:32.tax is not collected. Having a competitive rate is -- that is
:11:33. > :11:35.collected is better than having a rate that is not collected. If
:11:35. > :11:45.Gordon Brown implemented this policy, I don't think Johann Lamont
:11:45. > :11:46.
:11:46. > :11:50.could divorce herself from it. It is good for the economy. If we base our
:11:50. > :11:53.policies on what's best for jobs, investment and growth for the
:11:53. > :12:03.Scottish people, that's where this Government is in office and that is
:12:03. > :12:04.
:12:04. > :12:07.why Johann Lamont's party is sitting over there. To ask the First
:12:07. > :12:14.Minister when he will next meet the Secretary of State for Scotland?
:12:14. > :12:19.plans in the near future. Last year, people were shocked by the baby
:12:19. > :12:24.Ashes scandal. We now know that the issues raised in Edinburgh have
:12:25. > :12:27.spread to Glasgow and Aberdeen. Calls from the increasing number of
:12:27. > :12:37.affected parents for a public enquiry and growing louder. Will the
:12:37. > :12:38.
:12:38. > :12:40.First Minister ordered a full Robert enquiry? -- public enquiry?
:12:40. > :12:44.position is that the enquiry is proceeding and there is coordination
:12:44. > :12:49.across the councils in Scotland. That is an affective way to
:12:50. > :12:53.proceed. The Cabinet Secretary is always prepared to listen to
:12:53. > :12:57.positive suggestions in the matter, but I think the enquiry in Edinburgh
:12:57. > :13:00.is proceeding. There is confidence in the way that it is being
:13:00. > :13:05.conducted. Other councils in Scotland have now responded, and I
:13:05. > :13:08.think they have responded sick -- sympathetically and with
:13:08. > :13:14.understanding of the parents of Scotland. Therefore, I think the
:13:14. > :13:16.issue has been handled in a sensitive manner. If Ruth Davidson
:13:16. > :13:21.wants to bring proposals forward as to why a national public enquiry
:13:21. > :13:26.would actually benefit the parents, the bereaved parents, we will look
:13:26. > :13:30.at that. There is a big argument for effectively proceeding in the know
:13:30. > :13:40.-- in the wheat is being done off in terms of speed and in terms of
:13:40. > :13:40.
:13:40. > :13:43.giving people the answers they want. I do appreciate the steps that have
:13:43. > :13:48.been made on this issue, but those steps are being increasingly
:13:48. > :13:54.overtaken by events. Yes, the Edinburgh enquiry is proceeding, and
:13:54. > :13:56.in particular, there is also the Commission which has no direct
:13:56. > :14:03.representation from the parents themselves, despite them being
:14:03. > :14:07.promised as much. On Friday, it was said that parents would be able to
:14:07. > :14:11.make a written submission until the 19th of July. This week it has
:14:11. > :14:14.emerged that the independent audit of what went on in Aberdeen won't be
:14:14. > :14:20.so -- presented until the 24th of September. That means affected
:14:20. > :14:23.parents in the country will have no voice in this process. I agree that
:14:23. > :14:28.new protections have to be put in place, but parents are asking for an
:14:29. > :14:34.-- actions and what happened to be a child. This commission is not
:14:34. > :14:37.designed for that. To get what everyone in this chamber once, which
:14:37. > :14:47.is justice for the affected families across Scotland, we need a public
:14:47. > :14:48.
:14:48. > :14:54.quietly. Well he reconsider? purpose of the Bonhomie review is to
:14:54. > :14:59.get into place proper procedures. That is the priority. Get in police
:14:59. > :15:04.procedures that should have been in place and haven't been and to
:15:04. > :15:09.correct the decision. I don't think Ruth Davidson is correct in terms of
:15:09. > :15:12.the parental representation on the Bonhomie review. I can give her that
:15:12. > :15:16.information. I think she should be aware of that. But that is not the
:15:16. > :15:21.same thing as the investigation, the one taking place in Edinburgh and
:15:21. > :15:28.may take place else, which is to look at the past and find out what
:15:28. > :15:33.happened. There is a room for what Lord Bonhomie is doing to make sure
:15:33. > :15:38.that procedures are correctly applied. Not to wait for the inquiry
:15:38. > :15:42.to do that. It is clear as to what the correct procedures should be. So
:15:42. > :15:47.get that done. We will look at the arguments in terms of nature of
:15:47. > :15:57.inquiry, but there is an advantage in proceeding as quickly as we are,
:15:57. > :15:58.
:15:58. > :16:03.and meeting I think the concerns of parents and the wider community.
:16:03. > :16:08.constituency si suppliry. -- supplementary. Police staff without
:16:09. > :16:14.qualifications have been taking fingerprints in Dundee and Arbroath.
:16:14. > :16:17.Has the First Minister had reports of this happening anywhere else and
:16:17. > :16:20.can the First Minister reassure people that the review will be
:16:20. > :16:26.conducted as thoroughly as possible as there is a danger hear the
:16:26. > :16:31.evidence could be dismissed in serious cases, because of the breach
:16:31. > :16:35.of protocol? Yes, I can provide that reassurance. The review will be
:16:35. > :16:45.conducted swiftly and any lessons learned will be applied. I hope she
:16:45. > :16:48.
:16:48. > :16:54.will accept that reassurance. and Balfour contractors are bidding
:16:54. > :16:57.to build the new sick kids hospital. They have been up to their necks.
:16:57. > :17:03.Will the First Minister use his influence with these companies to
:17:03. > :17:09.get them to own up to what they have done and agree to pay compensation
:17:09. > :17:14.for ruined lives and careers and does he agree if they don't they
:17:14. > :17:20.should not be awarded contracts from the public sector. I don't know if
:17:21. > :17:25.he is familiar with the points I made at the STUC conference. I was
:17:25. > :17:33.addressing what we believe the government can do in terms of public
:17:33. > :17:38.sector contracts to make sure blacklisted is eliminated. What
:17:38. > :17:43.issues will be discussed at the cabinet. Issues of importance to the
:17:43. > :17:51.people of Scotland. The SNP MSP say they're prepared to back the closure
:17:51. > :17:57.of the local court in return for a new just sis centre for their' --
:17:57. > :18:01.justice Sen ten for their new legal centre. With only 12 days before
:18:01. > :18:07.this Parliament decides their future, can the First Minister tell
:18:07. > :18:15.these back benchers today when and where these new justice centres will
:18:15. > :18:18.be built? The SNP MSPs are making representations on behalf of their
:18:18. > :18:24.constituents. Perhaps if the Liberal Democrats had employed that policy,
:18:24. > :18:30.they would have more constituency members than they do. I expected
:18:30. > :18:35.some sort of exmra nation about -- explanation but nothing was
:18:35. > :18:41.forthcoming. It is ridiculous he does not have worked out plans for
:18:41. > :18:45.this. He can't even give us one single date and one location for
:18:45. > :18:50.these justice centres that his own backbenchers say are going to come.
:18:50. > :18:55.He already has a justice centre in Coupar, but he is planning to close
:18:55. > :19:02.it, to shut it. He already has one. But that is what he does. Last week
:19:02. > :19:05.we heard that more courts could close before any justice centres are
:19:05. > :19:11.built. The Law Society spoke out this week as well. So the clock is
:19:11. > :19:16.ticking, 12 days for SNP members on the Justice Committee to make that
:19:16. > :19:20.decision to back their government, or back their community. 500 years
:19:20. > :19:26.of local service against this Government's cavalier and chaotic
:19:26. > :19:36.approach. Wouldn't it be safer for SNP members to stand up for their
:19:36. > :19:37.
:19:37. > :19:43.communities and reject his court closure? Or look for best way to
:19:43. > :19:46.ensure justice. I know he lives in a world where public expenditure
:19:46. > :19:51.restrictions imposed by his colleagues in Westminster don't
:19:51. > :19:55.exist and he likes to believe that public services in Scotland should
:19:55. > :20:00.be immune from Westminster cuts, but nobody in Scotland doesn't
:20:00. > :20:07.understand the position. That is why the Liberal Democrats used to have a
:20:07. > :20:14.football team in this Parliament and now they have got a subs bench.
:20:14. > :20:18.Question four. To ask the First Minister what he economic value the
:20:19. > :20:28.Scottish Government places on services from Highlands and Islands
:20:28. > :20:30.arts to hub airports -- airports to hub airports. The Highlands and
:20:30. > :20:38.Islandses airports, worldwide connection is essential. The effect
:20:38. > :20:45.of the UK Government's air passenger duty has been demonstrated by
:20:45. > :20:51.Flybe's announcements of sales to slots at Gatwick. They said the
:20:51. > :20:55.ludicrous policy of charging duty on both legs of a flight, it is
:20:55. > :21:03.inevitable that high frequency services will beeesed out. --
:21:03. > :21:08.squeezed out. That is a warning statement and underlines the
:21:08. > :21:15.necessity for duty to be devolved to this Parliament. Does the First
:21:15. > :21:20.Minister review in 2008 -- rule in 2008 the services to Inverness to
:21:20. > :21:25.Heathrow were ended and is it not now important that the protecting
:21:25. > :21:32.the lichgs from Inverness to Gatwick is ever more essential. Of course,
:21:32. > :21:37.these are not my words. These are the words of the local MP, Danny
:21:37. > :21:42.Alexander in 2008. Is it not hypocrisy that the local MP had one
:21:42. > :21:49.opinion in 2008 and has done nothing in government to support air
:21:49. > :21:54.services from Inverness? Well, we should remember in context Danny
:21:54. > :22:02.Alexander is a Liberal Democrat, so adopting two positions at the same
:22:02. > :22:09.time may be part of party policy. But it is for the Secretary of the
:22:09. > :22:12.Treasury and the local member for Inverness to be responsible for the
:22:12. > :22:17.taxation which is driving and threatening services in Inverness
:22:17. > :22:23.and then come playing about it -- complaining about it. Perhaps if we
:22:23. > :22:31.agree on the position of devolving air passenger duty to this
:22:31. > :22:35.Parliament, to have a policy that benefits the Scottish economy and
:22:35. > :22:42.Danny Alexander would be relieved of his difficulty to be the Treasury's
:22:42. > :22:47.man in Inverness, while pretending to be inNess man in the Treasury. --
:22:47. > :22:51.Inverness. Will the First Minister hold talks with the UK government
:22:51. > :22:58.and Flybe and easyJet who have the flights from Inverness, will he look
:22:58. > :23:01.to having a PSO op routes to Gatwick and speak to the airlines about
:23:01. > :23:06.connectivity from the islands through to Gatwick, which used to be
:23:06. > :23:11.booked through one operator and will will require to be booked through
:23:11. > :23:14.two. These talks are ongoing with the Transport Minister and the
:23:14. > :23:21.airports. But the member should direct herself not just to what
:23:21. > :23:26.Flybe have said, but the extent of the studies across the Scottish
:23:26. > :23:30.airports and carriers who are looking at the differential impact
:23:30. > :23:35.the duty is having on Scottish flights. This is the key and source
:23:35. > :23:40.of the difficulty. Therefore I hope that the member will join with the
:23:40. > :23:45.government in calling for it to be devolved to this Parliament to
:23:45. > :23:54.produce a policy which benefits the Scottish economy, as opposed to
:23:54. > :24:02.threatening services. To ask what his response is to audit Scotland's
:24:02. > :24:07.report, managing early departures from the public sector, which says
:24:07. > :24:13.they are spending �280 million a year on early departures. The report
:24:13. > :24:19.notes that savings that have been made by the voluntary service
:24:19. > :24:24.arrangements by the Scottish Government. Under funding pressure
:24:24. > :24:28.it is inevitable that will be reductions, our policy of no
:24:28. > :24:32.compulsory redundancy is the right policy, it treats people with
:24:32. > :24:38.respect, and it gives security to those who remain within the public
:24:38. > :24:43.sector. It is a policy supported by the unions and pursued by this
:24:43. > :24:50.Government and a policy not available elsewhere in these
:24:50. > :24:57.islands. I am not sure if he agrees that audit Scotland is right toite
:24:57. > :25:02.this this. -- criticise this, but he he share concerns in the newly
:25:02. > :25:07.created police Scotland that a pool of money has been given to provide
:25:07. > :25:13.exit packages for senior police officers to reduce their numbers, as
:25:13. > :25:18.it is not heard for senior police officers and other services to take
:25:18. > :25:22.exit packages, only to return on the same or similar capacities. Will the
:25:22. > :25:27.First Minister give the Chale bear combhitment -- chamber a commitment
:25:27. > :25:37.that if and when senior police officers take golden goodbyes they
:25:37. > :25:43.will not then be able to say golden hello, hello to similar jobs.
:25:43. > :25:47.assurance that the services will manage more effective than many
:25:47. > :25:52.Labour authorities did. I don't think he should be allowed to put
:25:52. > :26:00.audit Scotland report in the context he did. On pain four of the report
:26:00. > :26:04.-- page four, early retirement and redundancy can be a useful way of
:26:04. > :26:08.avoiding the cost of compulsory redundancy. They provide significant
:26:08. > :26:12.savings for organisations. So I think the member should reflect on
:26:12. > :26:17.the balance of the report and what it had to say about that. And
:26:17. > :26:22.reflect on the range of cases, a range which I could quote, where the
:26:22. > :26:29.practices and policies of his colleagues have been brought into
:26:29. > :26:34.question. E Thank you. When I asked the cabinet Secretary of finance
:26:34. > :26:40.yesterday why the Scottish Government was spending ten times as
:26:40. > :26:45.much pushing people out of the door, he said the same excuse, that the
:26:45. > :26:51.Government has a policy of no compulsory redundancies and only use
:26:51. > :26:56.compromise agreements in a few cases. Labour's revealed since Alex
:26:56. > :27:01.Salmond came to power the Scottish government has spent �10 million on
:27:01. > :27:08.compulsory redundancies and �45 million on compromise agreements.
:27:08. > :27:13.he knows, we have introduced a compulsory redundancy policy across
:27:13. > :27:20.central Government. The policy, the Labour Party are saying they
:27:20. > :27:25.wouldn't have this? If they are, they had better tell the public
:27:25. > :27:31.sector unions. He should look at the public service in Scotland compared
:27:31. > :27:35.to the rest of the UK, the public service numbers are down less,
:27:35. > :27:41.because of the sensitivity with which he handled it. It right to
:27:41. > :27:48.have no compulsory redundancies as a policy. If he, as the Labour Party
:27:49. > :27:54.spokesman, looking after public sector employees says he will have
:27:54. > :28:04.compulsory redundancy. Then let him say so. Our policy is more in tune
:28:04. > :28:04.
:28:04. > :28:08.with kwha what the Scottish people demands. To ask the First Minister
:28:09. > :28:13.what the Scottish Government's response is to opinions in the
:28:13. > :28:18.briefing paper the funding of higher education. We welcome contributions
:28:18. > :28:25.to the debate and I'm sure she will have noticed the contribution from
:28:25. > :28:30.Universities Scotland. They published legal advice on
:28:30. > :28:34.universities post-independence and it could be per missible to charge
:28:34. > :28:38.students from the rest of the UK tuition. This Government has
:28:38. > :28:41.delivered free education in the face of the nay sayers who said it could
:28:41. > :28:48.not be done. We are confident we will continue to deliver free
:28:48. > :28:54.education in an independent Scotland. I am grateful, in light of
:28:54. > :28:59.the legal advice that has been published today, could the First
:28:59. > :29:04.Minister now confirm which groups of students would not pay fees in an
:29:04. > :29:08.independent Scotland and whether the Scottish Government has received...
:29:08. > :29:11.We are coming to the end of First Minister's questions. A confident
:29:11. > :29:15.ending from the First Minister on university education and confident