Chamber and committees

If the cabinet secretary is happy, I will kick off on that. I anticipate that the southern sustainability action plan in the spatial strategy will be of particular interest to you, Ms Hamilton. It speaks about a network of towns, recognising the unique character of the south of Scotland, and there is recognition that transport is a key issue.

I suppose that there are two aspects. The first is that we want to reduce the need for travel. That is about building up wealth within communities, and job opportunities. You will note that one of the universal policies—from memory, it is policy 5, on sustainable places—is about community wealth building. I know that South of Scotland Enterprise is very interested in that. By promoting greater community wealth building through the planning system and using other levers as well, we can help to reduce the need for unsustainable travel.

However, we also recognise that, in many cases, travel is unavoidable. That is reflected in the spatial strategy for the south of Scotland. Equally and analogously, the action plan for the north of Scotland, which is known as northern revitalisation, recognises the key role that our roads play and also the necessity for car use, which I mentioned to the convener. Part of how we respond to that will be about increasing EV infrastructure to support low-carbon travel, but we also have to see this in the broader context of our wanting to reduce car kilometres by 20 per cent and reduce unsustainable travel. Paragraph 5 of the spatial strategy reflects the fact that, for sustainability, addressing the issues around public transport and indeed cross-border transport will be significant.

I do not know whether Fiona Simpson wants to expand on any of those points.

I am sorry, but I missed the tail end of that question.

I appreciate the question, Dr Allan. That aim is not explicitly set out in the national planning framework, but one of the indirect consequences of supporting and increasing rural populations would be the direct benefit to Gaelic-speaking communities. However, I am conscious that Bòrd na Gàidhlig has highlighted some useful ideas, which we will consider and reflect on ahead of bringing a finalised NPF4 back to Parliament later this year.

Yes. I would add that policy 5 is a universal policy and that all development has to be considered through that community wealth-building lens. That agenda will grow and intensify throughout this parliamentary session as we work towards introducing legislation on community wealth building.

Some of the universal policies will have varying degrees of relevance and applicability. Aquaculture is one area where there will be significant interest. Although we are specifically discussing the role of the planning system in NPF4, these conversations could be expanded into the community wealth-building space, and I look forward to having them in due course.

That is a really important question. The draft NPF4 is a high-level document and subsidiarity applies, so there will be local development plans that can give effect to that in particular localities. There are also the local place plans that we have introduced, which allow individual neighbourhoods and communities within planning authorities’ areas to shape their local development plans.

With regard to what is stated about 20-minute neighbourhoods, I note that flexibility is built in, which is reflected in how the policy is defined, but also in the spatial strategy. The action areas, which include north and west coastal innovation and northern revitalisation, recognise that the concept of 20-minute neighbourhoods has a different application in areas with dispersed populations compared with places with dense populations.

For example, we will look to encourage 20-minute neighbourhoods in built-up urban areas by seeking to repopulate our town centres, and some measures are included on that. However, in local areas, that will require more nuance. That could involve establishing hubs and promoting active travel networks, but also recognising the need for cars. That can be supported through, for example, electric vehicle charging infrastructure. There is recognition that 20-minute neighbourhoods will have to be applied in a different manner in, say, South Uist, compared with how they will be applied in Shawlands in Glasgow.

Fiona Simpson might want to expand on the points that I have made and provide some more clarity.

We already have a suite of guidance and processes in place in the planning system. Of course, we will reflect on and refresh that as required. On the specific technical point, I ask Fiona Simpson to come in.

The cabinet secretary has covered a lot of the ground. Increasing the population of rural areas in Scotland is one of the statutory outcomes that is required of NPF4, as stipulated in the 2019 act. I highlight that policy 31, on rural places, is expansive. It takes a holistic look at a lot of the different areas and shows how they work together. I am conscious that it can be easy to say “rural communities”, but every rural community is unique.

I return to the point that we must not be overly prescriptive and that there is flexibility. However, there are clear expectations around what we require. For example, policy 31 states:

“Local development plans should set out proposals to support the sustainability and prosperity of rural communities and economies ... Development proposals that contribute to the viability, sustainability and diversity of the local economy should be supported”.

That is reflected in the policy aspects. It is important to remember that NPF4 is unique and that it brings the spatial strategy and what was Scottish planning policy together in the one document. This is part of the statutory development plan.

Our expectations are clear, but I recognise that, to realise those aspirations, there will be some variance between different rural communities. I am sure that Mr Fairlie would have something to say if I was to suggest all rural communities are the same and require the same response.

I want to pick up on that good example relating to Jenni Minto’s constituency. It picks up on the point that I was trying to articulate—probably not as clearly as I would have liked—to Ms Hamilton. The point is encapsulated in the Clyde mission national development because it stretches from south Lanarkshire all the way along the Clyde until Dunoon, and it takes in a whole range of communities. That one national development articulates the point that, as much as we have these semi-defined spatial areas, the borders will overlap. I am suggesting not that you have to draw a hard and fast line, but that there will be overlap. I recognise that in a constituency such as Jenni Minto’s, a whole range of different aspects of the spatial strategy will be applicable and will vary quite drastically from community to community.

Ms Wishart, you raise a really important point. Planning is ultimately concerned with development and it has to be able to identify the particular class of development that one is seeking. On specific issues around fuel poverty in relation to planning, we have already done work on permitted development rights around retrofitting and energy efficiency. We have a phased programme of reviewing PD rights and we can continue to take that into consideration.

More broadly, NPF4 is seeking to increase prosperity in Scotland but also to look at some of the specific national developments in, for example, strategic renewable energy generation and transmission infrastructure, pumped hydro storage, and industrial green transition zones.

Those national developments are particularly about promoting not just prosperity, but energy security. NPF4 can specifically contribute towards issues around fuel poverty by supporting more prosperous economies, increasing the number of people in employment and using national developments to provide that strategic underpinning for continuity and security of energy supply.

Ms Wishart has asked an excellent question that gets to the heart of planning, which is about how we balance competing areas: industrialisation, jobs, prosperity, and protecting and conserving the natural environment that we value. Planners wrestle with such questions every day.

I could attempt to answer the question, but I am conscious that we are joined by the chief planner for the Scottish Government. It would be helpful to get a planner’s perspective on how planners balance those issues and how that is reflected in the national planning framework.