Chamber and committees

Yes, I will.

This is a matter for the UK Government. The bill is proceeding at great pace and my understanding is that royal assent will be granted very soon—within the next few weeks. We must respond quickly to a bill that might quickly become law.

I note that the most recent amendment, tabled on Monday, is not covered by the supplementary LCM that we are debating today, as the UK Government tabled it too late for inclusion in this LCM. That, I am afraid, is how last minute some of those changes have been made at the UK Parliament end.

I have to make progress in the little time that I have available.

It is important to note that the Scottish Government was given very little notice of the tabling of the amendment dealing with clause 6A, and that was also the case with the clauses that are covered by today’s supplementary LCM. I note the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee’s concerns about not having sufficient time to scrutinise today’s LCM. I will be clear that the Scottish Government recognises the importance of Parliament having sufficient time to scrutinise legislation—indeed, we share the committee’s concerns on that point. The lack of time that is afforded to the Scottish Parliament to scrutinise the amendments is the result of decisions on timing taken by the UK Government due to the speed at which the bill is moving through the UK Parliament towards royal assent.

I have raised those points with UK ministers and I have emphasised the importance of the Scottish Parliament and its committees having sufficient time to consider matters. I also made it clear that amendments being made at an extremely late stage in the UK bill’s parliamentary passage make it extremely challenging to facilitate the Scottish Parliament’s consideration of motions on legislative consent ahead of the bill getting royal assent. I hope that members will therefore appreciate that the Scottish Government shares some of the concerns that have been expressed and that those concerns have been communicated to the UK Government.

On the substance of the UK bill, I am aware that there is a considerable level of interest in how GB Energy will operate. In the past few months, in parallel with our legislative discussions, my officials and I have worked with the UK Government to establish how GB Energy can help Scotland to seize the boundless opportunities that the energy transition will have here. Despite already having a strong pipeline of clean energy and growing supply chain opportunities, there are still so many opportunities for Scotland to grasp as we advance our position as one of the world’s leading countries in renewable energy production. We are engaging with the UK Government—I believe constructively—on funding priorities across the spectrum of Scottish clean energy interests to ensure that Scottish projects will benefit from GB Energy funding in 2025-26 and beyond.

In discussions with the UK Government, I and the acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy have been clear that GB Energy must deliver real benefits for the people of Scotland and support a just energy transition. It certainly has the potential to do that.

I move,

That the Parliament agrees that all relevant provisions of the Great British Energy Bill, introduced in the House of Commons on 25 July 2024 and subsequently amended in relation to sustainable development (clause 7A) on 11 February 2025, so far as these matters fall within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament and alter the executive competence of the Scottish Ministers, should be considered by the UK Parliament.

Will the member take an intervention?

As I have mentioned, there are independent mechanisms by which some of that is overseen. The Scottish Government has set itself exacting targets, and Scotland has made significant progress in reducing waste; the overall recycling rate in Scotland of 62.3 per cent is the highest since records began, and official statistics show that we now landfill less than a quarter of all waste. As the member has mentioned, there is much still to be done, but I believe that Scotland is making significant progress in the right direction.

I can confirm that I have already done that and will seek to do so again.

We will continue to work with partners to continue to grow the community energy sector, clean energy and supply chain opportunities. We look forward to further engagement to support those important priorities, which are vital for Scotland’s economic growth and net zero ambitions.

I urge the Parliament to back the motion granting legislative consent to all clauses within the UK bill, including clause 7A.

I thank the Parliament for giving us further opportunity to debate the Great British Energy Bill and the supplementary legislative consent memorandum that was lodged in Parliament on Monday. I seek that the Parliament gives consent to the UK bill and to the UK Government’s new clause on sustainable development.

During the UK Government bill’s report stage in the House of Lords, four amendments were made to the bill as recently as 11 February, one of which required the supplementary LCM from this Parliament. That amendment introduced clause 7A, which requires Great British Energy to keep

“under review”

its impact

“on the achievement of sustainable development in the United Kingdom”.

That clause will likely touch on areas in the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament, such as the environment and planning.

I note that a further amendment to the bill was tabled as recently as Monday. It would require the UK Secretary of State to “appoint an independent person”—

As a statutory consultee to the planning process, and Scotland’s environmental regulator, SEPA considers the environmental operation and management of waste facilities. That is a duty that is independent of the Scottish Government.

Through SEPA permits, waste incineration facilities must apply best available techniques, which were recently reviewed, to limit emissions. The new limits are now in force at all operational facilities. SEPA requires incinerator operators to publish emissions results and undertake their own monitoring to verify them, and it addresses non-compliance, in accordance with its enforcement policy.

It is fair to say that I would be reluctant to intervene in a conversation that SEPA is already having about an operating licence. Suffice to say, I would expect communities to be involved in all those conversations.

The member alludes to the fact that no new planning permissions have been granted since the publication of the review on the matter. That continues to be the Scottish Government’s policy nationally.

As I have mentioned, support exists through a number of channels, but supporting and building community resilience is key to all of that. As a Government, we recognise that communities are best able to address their own priorities. It is worth saying, too, that, at national level, the Scottish Government, through agencies such as the civil contingencies division, facilitates that conversation and that work in the voluntary sector resilience partnership.