Good afternoon. The first item of business is portfolio question time, and we start with education and skills. I remind members that q uestions 4 and 6 have been grouped together. That means that...

1. To ask the Scottish Government how it is responding to reports that knowledge of changes in pupil performance is at a 70-year low. (S5O-03917)

2. To ask the Scottish Government whether the review of co-ordinated support plans for children with additional needs will be conducted as part of or subsequent to the Morgan review of additional...

3. Presiding Officer, I apologise that, due to other parliamentary business, I need to leave the chamber after my question. To ask the Scottish Government when the root cause analysis report on...

4. To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the latest teacher number statistics, and what steps it is taking to retain teachers at all levels of education. (S5O-03920)

6. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve teacher recruitment. (S5O-03922)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what financial support it will provide to North Ayrshire Council to support the construction of a new Ardrossan academy. (S5O-03921)

7. To ask the Scottish Government whether the performance of Scotland in maths and science that was recorded in the recent programme for international student assessment results is its poorest....

8. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support pupil learning in the Highlands and Islands region. (S5O-03924)

1. To ask the Scottish Government what the impact has been of the Scottish Ambulance Service’s response times policy. (S5O-03925)

2. To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that, since 2009, the number of general practitioner practices in NHS Tayside has fallen from 69 to 63, while the average...

3. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to reports of worsening delays in the waiting times for children and young people to receive mental health treatment. (S5O-03927)

4. To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to extend access to palliative care services for homeless people. (S5O-03928)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to assist NHS Highland to reduce its reliance on locum staff. (S5O-03929)

7. To ask the Scottish Government what measures it plans to take in response to statistics showing that 65.4 per cent of patients referred to NHS Grampian were treated within 18 weeks. (S5O-03931)

8. To ask the Scottish Government how many people in East Ayrshire receive free personal or nursing care; what the qualifying age groups are to receive this, and what the annual cost is. (S5O-03932)

1. To ask the Scottish Government what funding streams and other support is available for alternative mechanisms to the business improvement district model. (S5O-03933)

4. To ask the Scottish Government how it supports communities in tackling inequality. (S5O-03936)

3. To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to encourage more house building in heavily populated urban towns and areas, such as Coatbridge. (S5O-03935)

5. To ask the Scottish Government how its planning policy and guidance to local authorities on takeaway food outlets take account of its policies on healthy eating. (S5O-03937)

7. To ask the Scottish Government, further to its answer to question S5O-03821, what plans it has to require privately owned flats in tower blocks over 11m high to have fire safety certification....

8. To ask the Scottish Government when the planning decision on the proposed development of a golf course at Coul Links will be announced. (S5O-03940)

The next item of business is a rail update statement by Michael Matheson. The cabinet secretary will take questions at the end of his statement, so there should be no interventions or interruptions.

The next item of business is a statement by Derek Mackay on Ferguson Marine.

The next item of business is a stage 1 debate on motion S5M-20223, in the name of Christina McKelvie, on the Female Genital Mutilation (Protection and Guidance) (Scotland) Bill.

The next item of business is consideration of business motion S5M-20241, in the name of Graeme Dey, on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau, setting out a business programme. Motion moved, That the...

There is one question to be put today. The question is, that motion S5M-20223, in the name of Christina McKelvie, on the Female Genital Mutilation (Protection and Guidance) (Scotland) Bill, be...

The final item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S5M-18859, in the name of James Dornan, on financial abuse to be recognised fully as coercive and controlling behaviour....