Chamber and committees

I read about the incident that affected Ms Mackenzie. First and foremost, I extend to her my good wishes for a speedy recovery and a return to record-breaking ways.

I make it very clear that involvement in a hit-and-run incident such as the one that affected Ms Mackenzie is a serious offence. It is in all road users’ interests that those responsible are held to account for that crime and that they face the consequences of their actions.

Road Safety Scotland has developed a significant number of social marketing campaigns to address those behaviours that cause the most harm on our roads. We also invest £400,000 a year in the give me cycle space campaign, which raises awareness among drivers of the need to give at least 1.5m when overtaking people on bikes. The campaign, which runs on television, radio, social media and physical advertising, recorded more than 140 million impressions last year. Post-campaign analysis shows that awareness of the issues raised has increased significantly, with more than 90 per cent of respondents agreeing with the overall message.

The Government is committed to the vision and aspirations of the road safety framework to 2030. Fundamental to that is the adoption of the safe system approach. One of the five pillars of that system is safe road users.

I do not have time for many interventions, but I will give way to Brian Whittle.

Perhaps on another occasion we will get into a discussion about the role of hydrogen and whether transport is its most likely sustainable use. However, of course there are differences between urban and rural contexts, whatever the fuel source that is being used.

Over the course of the debate, I have listened carefully to the arguments on progress with the dualling works on the A9 between Perth and Inverness and improvements on the A96 corridor. It is important to recognise that the Government is delivering exactly what we said we would when the shared policy programme was published.

I am fully committed to what we published in the Bute house agreement, which is a commitment to the north and north-east, including improvements on the A96 corridor. We have made it very clear that the current plan is to fully dual the A96, but at the same time, a transparent evidence-based review that includes a climate compatibility assessment to consider the direct and indirect impacts on climate and the environment must and will be conducted. I would have hoped that any political party that wills the end, by voting for ambitious climate targets, is also prepared to will the means, and will support us taking forward that work.

There is not enough time to address all the many issues that I wanted to discuss, but I genuinely hope that members in discussing these issues will focus on all the aspects of road safety that need to be taken forward, including the need to reduce traffic speeds and traffic volumes, achieve a modal shift to public and active travel and recognise that many people who are vulnerable to issues around road safety need protection when they use active travel. There is a huge amount that we need to get right, and the Government is committed to doing that as part of our road safety framework. I support the amendment in Jenny Gilruth’s name.

I am happy, as I am sure fellow ministers will be, to explore those issues further with Mr McArthur. Far from sounding a discordant note, I hope that all members recognise that ScotWind promises to be transformational in delivering economic supply chain benefits as well as a huge amount of renewable electricity generation.

We welcome the commitment of developers to invest an average of £1.4 billion in Scotland per project. That equates to more than £28 billion across the 20 ScotWind offshore wind projects. The two ScotWind projects that are in close proximity to the Western Isles are no exception. The 1.8GW link marks a major step forward in unlocking the renewable potential of the islands. Although we share the disappointment that has been expressed about the delay to the planned 600MW interconnector, we welcome the news that the interconnector that National Grid ESO now states as being required will be significantly larger than originally planned and will accommodate the energy generated from all known onshore and offshore wind in and around the Western Isles.

The timescale for such multimillion-pound projects has slipped in the past and the Scottish Government will continue to seek assurances that the interconnector will now progress swiftly and without further delay. Final investment will be subject to Ofgem approval and necessary planning consent. As Alasdair Allan did in his opening speech, we continue to call on Ofgem to ensure that the new 1.8GW interconnector is included in its final list of projects approved for accelerated development.

We strongly encourage National Grid ESO to explore all avenues to accelerate the timelines for our other ScotWind projects. We are pleased that it has announced its intention to progress with a transmission entry capacity amnesty, which might help to free up transmission capacity that is being held for some legacy projects that are not progressing.

Scotland’s long and positive association with renewables continues to go from strength to strength. It is central to our green recovery. In 2021, Scotland generated enough renewable electricity to power all households here for almost three years. That is a huge achievement.

We recognise the importance of energy generated in the Western Isles in contributing to the decarbonisation of Scotland’s energy supply and to our just transition towards net zero by 2045. We are pleased that National Grid ESO also recognises its importance and we call on Ofgem to ensure that the new 1.8GW link is included in its final list of projects for accelerated investment so that that vital piece of work can be completed well ahead of our 2030 targets.

In a moment; I will first make some progress.

As committed to in the shared policy programme, the A9 programme between Perth and Inverness is being taken forward subject to the normal statutory authorisation and business case processes.

As many members have done, I begin by expressing my sympathies to everyone who has been affected either by the loss of a loved one or by injury on our roads over this year.

As the Minister for Transport said, the accidents on the trunk roads, in particular, that members have been discussing are deeply tragic for everyone. Our road safety framework to 2030 sets out ambitious targets to reduce the number of accidents, and we are absolutely determined to deliver on those. That will require us to address the recent upturn in the number of accidents on the A9 while we continue to invest in the safety of our wider network and promote safety for everyone who uses it, the communities that it serves, and the businesses, services and individuals who rely on it.

That will require on-going investment to support a wide range of outcomes—reducing death and injury on our roads, of course, but also improving safety for communities and reducing the terrible loss that families, friends and individuals suffer whenever a loved one is lost, whether they are a driver, a pedestrian, a cyclist or anyone else.

Road safety, every bit as much as the climate emergency, demands of us a change in approach to transport after decades of rising road traffic volumes, with all the additional risk and the environmental damage that comes as a direct result.

I am about to turn to some of Mr Simpson’s comments, so let me make a little progress.

Road safety is about more than road design, and increased capacity is certainly no guarantee of better safety. Although the transport minister was right to say that the Conservative motion strikes a respectful tone, I genuinely wish that that was true of all the speeches that we heard, some of which appeared to be more interested in party-political point scoring or name calling than in dealing with genuinely serious road safety issues.

Mr Simpson recognised that different reasons exist for all accidents. That is true, but his focus was on one intervention only—dualling. He had little to say on issues around reducing road speed, reducing traffic volume, addressing driver behaviour or the very positive role that cameras can play, as Mr Ruskell mentioned—in fact, very few members did. In what should be a serious debate about road safety, Mr Simpson seemed more interested in slightly cartoonish imagined conversations between people whose politics he disagrees with.

Even if it is a niche debate, it is an extremely important niche. Not everyone is drawn to the slightly more technical aspects of such an issue, but the realisation of the project to which Alasdair Allan has drawn our attention will benefit huge numbers of people across Scotland, in particular in communities such as those that he represents.

Scotland has a long and positive history of harnessing renewable energy, and our capacity to generate it will have to increase to meet our climate change targets. Increased electrification and deployment of renewables to meet expected growth in demand will require significant investment in our electricity infrastructure, in order to maintain resilience and increase transfer capability between Scotland and the rest of the Great Britain market, as well as to meet our own increased needs.

As Liam McArthur says, our island communities, including those that Alasdair Allan represents, have a critical role to play in that, so of course we welcome the inclusion in National Grid ESO’s report, “Pathway to 2030—Holistic Network Design” of a new 1.8GW transmission line to connect the Western Isles. Alasdair Allan, in bringing the motion to the chamber, is quite right to highlight—as other members have done—that expectations are now on Ofgem to ensure that the project goes ahead.

The proposed line will accommodate the renewable energy generated from all known onshore and offshore wind in and around the Western Isles. That is a significant and important step, which will be key to enabling Scotland’s transition to net zero, as well as supporting long-term energy security.

We are well on the road to fully decarbonising our electricity system in Scotland, but it is vital that we continue to work together to enable all of those critical investments, while making sure that regulatory levers continue to drive down costs and increase benefits for energy customers as well as communities.

We must not repeat the mistakes of the past. We must ensure a managed and fair transition to net zero. That is why we will work collaboratively with the regulator, the UK Government and communities and industry to secure that just transition and harness opportunities across all sectors to build a better and more equal Scotland. However, we can do that only if the necessary infrastructure is in place to meet our growing renewable energy generating capacity.

As we move towards a net zero society, the electrification of heat and transport will increase our demand for electricity. It is vital that that demand is met by renewables and flexible solutions, rather than by fossil fuels and nuclear generation. Taking advantage of our extensive offshore wind resource will enable us to do that, but there must be a means to transport that power to where it is needed. Heat in buildings, for example, accounts for 20 per cent of Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions. The climate change plan envelope for buildings, and our heat in buildings strategy, require more than 1 million on-gas homes to convert to zero emissions heat by the end of this decade, and for emissions from homes and buildings to fall by 68 per cent over the same period.

I visited the Western Isles back in May and heard directly from people there about the challenges of decarbonising homes and buildings on the islands. Changing how we heat our homes and use energy in our homes and buildings is fundamentally about addressing climate change, but it can also strengthen our energy security and, if we get the details right, can represent a stepping stone toward not just a greener but a fairer Scotland for everyone. That is why we have committed to continuing to make our homes more energy efficient and to decarbonise heat, with at least £1.8 billion being made available during the course of this session of Parliament.

Although the Scottish Government does not have the power to mandate community benefits, we expect delivery partners of the transmission link to work with local communities and ensure that they share in the benefits of the project.

Our seas are home to some of the best offshore wind resources in the world, and Scotland’s ambition to capitalise on our offshore wind generation capacity is part of the bold action that we are taking to become a net zero society. I am aware that projects in Scottish waters are at a competitive disadvantage compared to projects further south as a result of the more challenging conditions and the higher transmission costs. We are actively engaged in the offshore transmission network review to consider how the offshore transmission network is designed and delivered here in Scotland.

The decisions and actions that we take now will shape the Scotland that future generations live and work in. Recognising the undeniable benefits to our economy, the Scottish Government has consistently provided a supportive environment for both offshore and onshore wind over the past decade.

The Scottish ministers have made it clear time and again that we will use every lever at our disposal to maximise the wider economic returns for Scotland from the wind sector. ScotWind is the world’s largest commercial leasing round for floating offshore wind and puts Scotland at the forefront of offshore wind development globally. Together with the option fees for the clearing round, ScotWind will deliver more than £700 million in revenues to the public purse for the initial awards alone.

The Scottish ministers are considering how the ScotWind revenue should be invested to maximise the benefits for the people of Scotland. In addition, ScotWind will deliver several billion pounds more in rental revenues when projects become operational. That, too, will be invested for the benefit of the people of Scotland.

We do not need a remedial lesson in how Scottish Government finances work. Mr Kerr can take that up with his finance colleagues if he needs a lesson.

I reiterate our call on the UK Government to provide additional support to vulnerable consumers ahead of, during and beyond this winter, and I seek urgent clarity about the protection that consumers will have in the face of forthcoming price rises beyond April. Those consumers include many people living in rural communities across Scotland, who face higher living costs than others in more central areas.

Let us remind ourselves again that the devastating impacts of skyrocketing energy prices on consumers are caused by overdependency on natural gas. That is dependency that we must break, although Mr Kerr would suggest that we should keep locking ourselves into dependency on fossil fuels. Although our actions today can help to ensure that consumers are given vital support, we must also keep in mind the need to accelerate our transition to net zero heating and a decarbonised energy system.

It is now necessary, given the reversal of the commitment to a two-year price cap, to consider what the options might be after the first six months. I remind Mr Kerr that when the Scottish Conservatives were not busy promoting the UK Government’s disastrous tax plans, they were happy to welcome that two-year commitment when it was first made. It does not cut it to say now that six months is the right timescale or that this Parliament has all the powers that it needs.

This Parliament can do nothing yet to regulate energy prices or to break the link between gas and electricity prices that Labour colleagues rightly point out. The UK Government has been giving that commitment for a long time but it is hanging there, amid uncertainty about which minister will even be responsible for progressing it or when it might be progressed. We can do nothing in this Parliament yet to give people in Scotland the financial benefit of the cheap, clean, abundant, renewable electricity that is being generated in this country. This Parliament should be able to take much greater action to give people in Scotland the benefit of that renewable electricity and to tackle fuel poverty.

For the time being, until we have those greater powers, I ask members to agree to the LCM to ensure that people get the emergency support that they need and deserve.