We come to decision time. The first question is, that amendment S5M-24095.2, in the name of the Lord Advocate, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24095, in the name of Murdo Fraser, on the Crown Office, be agreed to. Are we agreed?

The Presiding Officer:

There will be a division. I will suspend the meeting for a few minutes to allow members to access the voting app.

16:36 Meeting suspended.

16:40 On resuming—

We are back in session and go straight to the vote. The question is, that amendment S5M-24095.2, in the name of the Lord Advocate, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24095, in the name of Murdo Fraser, on the Crown Office, be agreed to. This will be a one-minute division.

The vote is now closed. If members were not able to exercise their vote or had difficulty in voting, they should let me know by raising a point of order.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was not able to vote. I would have voted no.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you. I note that you would have voted no to the amendment in the name of the Lord Advocate. I will make sure that your vote is added.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was unable to access the app. I would have voted no.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you. I will make sure that your vote is added. You would have voted no to the amendment.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I apologise—I do not know what is happening with my device. I would have noted no.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you. I will make sure that your vote is added. You would have voted no to the amendment.

On a point of order, Presiding officer. I would have voted no.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you. I will make sure that your vote is added to the register.

The Presiding Officer:

The result of the division on amendment S5M-24095.2, in the name of the Lord Advocate, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24095, in the name of Murdo Fraser, on the Crown Office, is: For 66, Against 59, Abstentions 0.

Amendment agreed to.

The next question is, that amendment S5M-24095.1, in the name of Rhoda Grant, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24095, in the name of Murdo Fraser, on the Crown Office, be agreed to.

Amendment agreed to.

The next question is, that motion S5M-24095, in the name of Murdo Fraser, on the Crown Office, as amended, be agreed to.

Motion, as amended, agreed to,

That the Parliament notes the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s admission of malicious prosecutions of David Whitehouse and Paul Clark, formerly administrators of Rangers Football Club PLC; notes that £24,086,250 of taxpayers money was paid out to Mr Whitehouse and Mr Clark for compensation and legal fees; notes that this situation is unprecedented in Scottish legal history; further notes that the Lord Advocate and COPFS have committed to supporting public and Parliamentary accountability and notes that legal proceedings are ongoing; agrees that there should be a transparent process of inquiry, once all related legal proceedings are completed; agrees that the precise mechanism of inquiry, which should be led by a judge, should be determined once all related legal proceedings have concluded; understands that further compensation is also to be paid on behalf of the Chief Constable, and believes that the remit of any inquiry should include examination of the role and involvement of Police Scotland.

Before putting the next question, I remind members that, if the amendment in the name of Ivan McKee is agreed to, the amendment in the name of Claire Baker will fall.

The next question is, that amendment S5M-24084.1, in the name of Ivan McKee, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24084, in the name of Graham Simpson, on the Covid-19 response and the role of local newspapers, be agreed to. Are we agreed?

There will be a division. Members have one minute.

The vote is now closed. I encourage any member who was not able to vote to let me know.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was unable to log in, for some reason. I wished to vote no.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you, Mr McArthur. I will ensure that your vote is added to the register.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was unable to vote. I would have voted no to the amendment.

The Presiding Officer:

Thank you, Mr Carson. I will ensure that your vote—a second vote against the amendment in the name of Ivan McKee—is added.

The Presiding Officer:

The result of the division on amendment S5M-24084.1, in the name of Ivan McKee, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24084, in the name of Graham Simpson, on the Covid-19 response and the role of local newspapers, is: For 62, Against 63, Abstentions 0.

Amendment disagreed to.

The next question is, that amendment S5M-24084.2, in the name of Claire Baker, which seeks to amend motion S5M-24084, in the name of Graham Simpson, on the Covid-19 response and the role of local newspapers, be agreed to.

Amendment agreed to.

The next question is, that motion S5M-24084, in the name of Graham Simpson, on the Covid-19 response and the role of local newspapers, as amended, be agreed to.

Motion, as amended, agreed to,

That the Parliament recognises the vital role that local newspapers have played in keeping people informed during the COVID-19 pandemic; believes that a vibrant newspaper sector is essential for democracy, and calls on the Scottish Government to ensure that its advertising budget spend is invested in a way that supports innovative journalism and regional and local news, and to extend business rates relief to newspapers during 2021-22.

I propose to ask a single question on four Parliamentary Bureau motions. Does any member object?

As no member objects, the final question is, that motions S5M-24106 and S5M-24107, on approval of Scottish statutory instruments; motion S5M-24108, on suspension of the standing orders; and motion S5M-24109, on the variation of standing orders, all in the name of Graeme Dey, on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau, be agreed to.

Motions agreed to,

That the Parliament agrees that the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 [draft] be approved.

That the Parliament agrees that the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 (Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land) Regulations 2021 [draft] be approved.

That the Parliament agrees that, for the purposes of consideration of the Scottish Budget 2021-22, Rule 5.8.1(a) of Standing Orders be suspended.

That the Parliament agrees that, subject to its agreement to the general principles of the Budget (Scotland) (No.5) Bill, for the purposes of consideration of the Bill at stage 3, in Rule 9.16.6 of Standing Orders—

(a) the words “or 3” be omitted;

(b) the words “Notice of any amendment at stage 3 shall be given by lodging it with the Clerk no later than 4.30 pm on Monday 8 March 2021.” be inserted at the end.

That concludes decision time. Before we go, I remind members to wear their masks, to follow the one-way system and to observe social distancing.

Meeting closed at 16:50.