The Scottish Government has produced a refreshed National YouthWork Strategy 2014-19, external, which was delivered in partnership between YouthLink Scotland, Scottish government and Education Scotland.

Image source, YouthLink Scotland

The strategy has 5 Ambitions:

1. Ensure Scotland is the best place to be young and grow up in
2. Put young people at the heart of policy
3. Recognise the value of youth work
4. Build workforce capacity
5. Ensure we measure impact

Ms Campbell says the Youth Awards can also change lives in unexpected places, helping some of Scotland's most vulnerable young people.

The minister says the awards can build confidence, capacity, resilience and skills.

She says the government will look to ensure Youth Awards and youth work can help raise attainment.

Image source, Thinkstock

The Young People Minister says last year the government announced £12m of funding to this end.

She points to the £75m raised by CashBack for Communities to help young people

The minister says she is committed to the investment in youth work. 

The YouthWork Strategy formalises the Statement on the Nature and Purpose of Youth Work.

Image source, Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scotland

Purpose of Youth Work:

• Build self-esteem and self-confidence
• Develop the ability to manage personal and social relationships
• Create learning and develop new skills
• Encourage positive group atmospheres
• Build the capacity of young people to consider risk, make reasoned decisions and take control
• Develop a ‘world view’ which widens horizons and invites social commitment 

Ms Campbell says youth work contributes to wider ambitions of a fairer society.

She says youth employment is now at its highest since 2005 and there are record numbers of people going to positive ambitions.

The minister details the benefits of youth work.

Children and Young People Minister Aileen Campbell says Scotland should be the best place to grow up and to achieve that underprivileged children should be helped.

Ms Campbell says the Youth Awards have given 73,000 awards to young people around Scotland and every one of those were for children and young people who contribute to society.

We won't be supporting the Labour amendment because it is important to recognise what Youth Awards do for the curriculum of excellence, she says. 

The Youth Awards Network:.

• The Awards Network and the Amazing Things publications have raised awareness and increased understanding of the range of youth awards, mainly with youth work managers and staff.
• Young people gain a wide range of skills such as confidence, interpersonal, team working, leadership and employability through participation in youth awards.
• Youth awards support young people in their learning and to progress to further and higher education, training and employment on leaving school.

Image source, Outward Bound Trust/ Scottish government

• For some young people facing additional challenges participation in youth awards is life changing.
• Young people participating in youth awards contribute significantly to local and wider communities through volunteering.  A recent Volunteer Scotland study, external found that 45% of young people volunteer compared to 27% of adults.  

Children and Young People Minister Aileen Campbell leads the debate entitled Celebrating the Success of Scotland's Young People and Youth Work.

Image source, bbc

Ms Campbell uses her motion to highlight the recent publication of the Education Scotland HMIE Report, A review of youth awards in Scotland: Helping young people to be successful, confident, effective and responsible citizens., external

The minister also points to the success of the Awards Network.

Housing Minister Margaret Burgess says she cannot say when this legislation will begin if passed.

Ms Burgess says when seeking to evict someone from your home there should be a due process. 

She says she is encouraged by what she has heard and will consider recommendations. 

Housing Minister Margaret Burgess says there is no doubt that an increase of housing supply is needed and the government is committed to that.

Ms Burgess says the Private Housing Bill is about security for people in the private sector and it is about someone's home.

It is about rebalancing the relationship between tenants and landlords, says the minister.

She says students should not be treated in any way differently from other tenants.

Labour MSP Ken Macintosh says a quarter of poor households now live in the private housing sector.

Mr Macintosh praises the efforts of Shelter and Crisis in ensuring this bill came about.

He says he is pleased the minister has accepted the end of the no fault eviction and has brought in rent controls.

The Labour MSP says students should not be treated as a different category of tenant.

Scottish Conservative MSP Alex Johnstone says rent is considered to be rising in Scotland but it is actually stable.

For that reason it is of concern that rents which have not been rising because they have a sitting tenant may now rise annually due to this bill, he says. 

Mr Johnstone says the conservatives will vote against the general principles of this bill but that is not to say it will not back it in the future.

The government must work for our support at stage three, he says. 

Deputy Presiding Officer John Scott says the lights will warm up and brighten gradually following the power cut. 

We're back and the deputy presiding officer calls Patrick Harvie.

The Green MSP says the purpose of a house is to provide a home to someone, its role as an investment is secondary to that.

Mr Harvie says all housing is essentially social and all owners have social responsibility. 

The Scottish Green Party co-convener says he welcomes the government has moved its position on rent controls.

He says some measures in the bill allow a former tenant to complain they have been the subject to a misleading eviction.

Deputy presiding officer John Scott temporarily suspends the parliament due to a loss of lighting.

Labour MSP David Stewart says zones would restrict rent levels to a consumer price index rate.

Mr Stewart says the biggest issue with rent is the lack of social housing available.

There must be a system for appeal he says, otherwise it could result in a "zero-hours tenancy".

At least 12,000 affordable homes need to be built in Scotland each year for the next five years, according to three leading housing organisations.

The figure is double what is currently being provided.

Undertaking such a programme would cost £700m a year, experts commissioned to look into the issue found.

Housing charity Shelter has urged all political parties to pledge to meet the 12,000 homes target in their Holyrood election manifestos.

The Scottish government currently has a target of building 6,000 affordable homes per year.

Lib Dem MSP Jim Hume says their needs to be a sufficient number of properties available which is not currently the case.

Mr Hume says he looks forward to the government's promise to build more affordable homes.

One of the outcomes of rent controls could actually be an increase to rent costs, he says.

The south Scotland MSP says he supports Shelter's view that tenants should be given a reasonable amount of time to pay rent arrears. 

Scottish Conservative MSP Alex Johstone says a good relationship between the landlord and tenant must be encouraged.

Mr Johnstone says the legislation is not in a form he can accept at this stage.

"No one is suggesting you should be able to throw someone out on the street for no reason", he says.

The Tory MSP says it is difficult to evict someone on the grounds of anti-social behaviour and neighbors will not often testify against tenants due to fear of repercussions. 

Jayne Baxter says Labour will back the general principles of the Private Housing Bill at decision time.

Labour MSP Jayne Baxter says the debate is taking place in the midst of the housing crisis facing Scotland.

Ms Baxter says it is important that renters get a fair deal.

She says 14% of households live in private rented accommodation.

The Labour MSP says the private rented sector is often the only option for homeless people.