Chamber and committees

I will.

Will the member take an intervention?

I thank all the members who have contributed usefully to today’s debate, as well as Mr Lumsden. I recommend that Parliament votes to give consent to all clauses in the bill, including the new clause 7A. As I said earlier, I am very disappointed with the length of time that the Parliament has been given to consider the new amendments by the UK Government. I nonetheless believe that it is important that we look at ways to ensure that the opportunities that GB Energy can provide to Scotland are realised. I believe that the agreement to give consent to the LCM will help to support that effort.

Mr Rennie and others have expressed concerns about process and timings. I hear those concerns loud and clear and I share many of them. I reiterate to the UK Government the importance of our parliamentary process and the need to give the Scottish Parliament sufficient time to scrutinise legislation, including late-stage amendments. Given the fact that the bill requires the consent of this Parliament, it is crucial that members are given sufficient time to consider proposed changes. That process has at points not met that test, and I have made that point to the UK Government.

To pick up on Daniel Johnson’s very sensible question about why we could not have waited until later in the UK bill’s progress to deal with an LCM, I should perhaps clarify that LCMs have to be lodged within 14 days of a Government amendment being taken, which I hope explains our reasoning on that.

On Edward Mountain’s point about what has been happening since last summer on these issues, I make no apology at all for seeking assurances from the UK Government that would ensure that the interests of this Parliament would be assured in devolved areas when the bill becomes law.

By way of conclusion, despite the concerns that have rightly been expressed by members and the justified scepticism from Jackie Dunbar about the Labour Government’s election commitments, it is sensible for us to continue to work with partners, including GB Energy, the UK Government and our public bodies, to continue to grow the community energy sector.

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.

We have met our target to reduce total waste in Scotland by 15 per cent against 2011 levels, and in 2022, our recycling rate in Scotland was 62.3 per cent, which is the highest since records began. The Government has made a significant investment in modernising recycling in Scotland.

The Scottish Government supports communities by providing national guidance to Scotland’s statutory emergency response organisations, as well as advice and online learning through the Ready Scotland website and the public information campaign, and convening online and face-to-face events with communities and voluntary organisations to support the sharing of best practice.

Within Scotland’s established resilience partnership arrangements, local authorities are the main link to communities, supporting them in developing emergency resilience activities and plans, including those for significant power outages. During storm Éowyn, local authorities, power companies, voluntary sector organisations and other local responders rose to the challenge and supported communities across the country.