Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop says in 2018 Scotland will have a year long celebration of the country and its young people.

Ms Hyslop says events is very much a part of Scotland's offer and that it is internationally recognised.

The culture secretary says the country should continue to tap into the skills and talent locally to continue to hold world class events. 

The government has a ten year collaborative strategy to grow Scotland’s £3.5 billion events industry.

‘Scotland – The Perfect Stage’ sets out how Scotland can enhance its reputation nationally and internationally as the perfect stage for events.

The strategy updates the previous version, which culminated in the unprecedented success of 2014 when Scotland hosted the 20th Commonwealth Games, 2014 Cultural Programme, The Ryder Cup and more than 1,000 events in the Homecoming Scotland 2014 programme.

Image source, bbc

Produced with over 100 contributions from the public, private and third sectors, the strategy covers everyone involved in planning, securing, supporting and delivering events in Scotland. This includes major events of international significance and smaller events supporting local communities.

At the centre of the strategy is equal responsibility for delivery on the Scottish Government, the Events and Festivals sector and individual event organisers. This represents a more collaborative approach to ensure that Scotland continues to develop, improve and invest in the events industry.

According to the Scottish Events and Festivals Association (SEFA), the industry is currently worth an estimated £3.5 billion a year to the Scottish economy.

Ms Hyslop highlights the government's events strategy.

The culture secretary says the government intends to generate £5.5m visitor spend by 2020 and events will be crucial in this.

Image source, bbc

She says the value of these events cannot be underestimated.

Ms Hyslop points to the success of the best golf competitions in the world and the festivals

She praises all of Team GB, olympians and paralympians who competed in Rio.

Image source, Krisis Sutherland

Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop will now lead a debate entitled 'Securing Scotland's Position as the Perfect Stage for Events'.

Conservative MSP Graham Simpson intervenes asking how the money will be distributed, by the government or councils.

Mr Stewart says discussion with local authorities will be held.

He says any council choosing to raise income tax will retain all of that money and no council will be financially worse off, but there will b £100m to address the attainment gap.

Mr Stewart says the government will consult with local authorities to allow them to plan for the future.

He says the Resolution Foundation says the SNP plans are more progressive.

The minister says the Conservatives want progressiveness taken out of the equation.

Mr Stewart says the additional revenues raised, £100m, will contribute to closing the attainment gap.

He insists the money will go down to local levels to achieve that goal.

Local Government Minister Kevin Stewart echoes the finance secretary and says the council tax reform is the begin

Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie asks: "If the journey is just beginning when on earth is it coming to an end."

Mr Stewart says with the cooperation of opposition parties the end may become clear.

The minister says the present council tax for all of its flaws does tick some boxes, like convenience and certainty.

Conservative MSP Graham Simpson says his party welcomes the SNP conversion to their way of thinking over

Mr Simpson says the reform should be a local tax raised locally and spent locally, not a national tax spent by the government elsewhere.

Finance Secretary Derek Mackay intervenes to insist every penny raised through council tax will stay in local authorities.

Mr Simpson disagrees and says there is no mechanism for the Scottish government to gather council tax but they will cut the grant to local authorities.

The local tax reform is "robbing Peter to pay Paul tax, or the Nat tax" and he accuses Mr Mackay and John Swinney as two highway robbers riding off with their bag of swag.

The Scottish government has ordered an independent review of undercover policing in Scotland.

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson has directed Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland to investigate the actions of undercover officers.

A review is ongoing in England and Wales, but the UK government has refused to extend it to Scotland, leaving Mr Matheson "disappointed".

Image source, Guardian

Victims of police spying had called for a Scottish inquiry to be set up.

Holyrood's parties had been united in calling for an extension to the Pitchford Inquiry, which was set up in England and Wales to investigate allegations of misconduct by undercover officers.

There are allegations that undercover Metropolitan Police officers had fathered children and caused miscarriages of justice, with claims of this activity extending to Scotland.

Scottish Labour MSP Alex Rowley asks the government to looks again and come up with new proposals to get local government back on a level footing.

Finance Minister Derek Mackay intervenes saying that's exactly what the government are doing.

Mr Rowley asks why, in 2007, the SNP said tinkering with council tax was wrong but now that is exactly what they are doing

The SNP are "bottling it", he says. 

Scottish Green Party co-convener Patrick Harvie says his party were clear there needed to be a debate on the commission's report, before the marginal changes to local tax come in.

Mr Harvie says he is not sure he can take the government's argument that this is just the beginning seriously.

Image source, bbc

The Scottish Green MSP says he agrees with his colleague Andy Wightman who challenged the parliament to rise to the challenge of this debate.

Mr Harvie says lets not impose something even more chaotic on local authorities and says it is time the parliament stopped hoarding powers at a national level.

SNP MSP Ruth Maguire says much remains to be done to create a sustainable and fairer local tax system.

The SNP MSP says what has been proposed is an improvement though.

Image source, bbc

She accepts the government's reforms do not go far enough for some but insists it is an improvement.

The SNP MSP says the poorest households will not be hit by any increase in council tax by the reforms.

Labour MSP Neil Bibby says his party would broaden the tax base and empower local authorities, which is long over due.

Mr Bibby says his party would use a 50p top rate of income tax to go towards education.

Image source, bbc

He says the attainment gap will not be closed if the budget for local authorities continue to be slashed.

The Labour MSP says the Scottish government proposals on local tax are not bold enough. 

Image source, bbc

SNP MSP John Mason says he is very pleased local authority control has been increased under the SNP.

Mr Mason says he believes councils should be given as much control over council tax as possible, but say it is unfair.

He says his key targets are that those with wealth pay a fairer share and those with a higher income pay a fairer share.

The SNP MSP says local income tax is attractive but impracticable.

The total amount of expenses claimed by MSPs last year increased to £12,770,924, the latest returns have revealed.

The figure represented a 2.18% - or £272,203 - increase on the previous year's figure.

Image source, Scottish Parliament

A Scottish Parliament spokesman said the rise was in line with inflation.

The claims included a Tory landowner who charged taxpayers £163 for a night in a Norwegian hotel and £113 for a taxi ride to the airport.

Sir Jamie McGrigor, a former Conservative MSP for the Highlands and Islands, claimed a total of £680 for a trip to Norway in May 2015.

Read more about MSPs expenses here.

Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie says this debate has been mired in rhetoric from the beginning.

Mr Rennie says in 2007 Nicola Sturgeon regarded the council tax as "hated" and said that "tinkering with the bands would not make the system any fairer".

Image source, bbc

He says the commission called for its end but now the SNP is going to keep the council tax.

The Scottish Lib Dem leader says his party remains in favour of a local income tax and ending the council tax.

In March, Nicola Sturgeon announced that the average band E household pay about £2 more per week, with those in the highest band paying an extra £10 a week.  

The changes aim to bring in an extra £100m a year for schools.

They follow a report by the Commission on Local Tax Reform which last year called for the council tax to be scrapped rather than reformed, and urged politicians to implement a fairer, more progressive and transparent tax to fund local services.

At the time the Scottish Conservatives leader said it was vital that the SNP did not allow Scotland to get a reputation as a high tax country.

Scottish Labour pledged to scrap the council tax, saying the current system is "unfair".

The party unveiled plans for a new form of local government tax based on property value which it said would make 80% of households better off.

The Scottish Green Party has a 'Scrap the Council Tax' petition on its website.

Andy Wightman MSP, Local Government spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, has highlighted how he thinks the Scottish government's proposal to alter Council Tax and appropriate additional funds breaches international law.  

The Scottish Lib Dems called for a "fairer system of local taxation to replace the Council Tax".

It said it is attracted by the "economic and social benefits that could be brought about by a system of land value tax".