Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00628 on 5 June 2026. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The Scottish Government remains committed to continued electrification of passenger rail services in Scotland.

Electrification plans are being developed to align with Scotrail's fleet renewal requirements, in order to deliver electrification and decarbonisation in the most efficient manner. Our plans for the fleet renewal programme is set out in Transport Scotland Rail Recharged: Scotland’s Fleet Transition Strategy, published in November 2025.

The Scottish Government remains committed to the Aberdeen to Central Belt Enhancement project.

The timescales for the Aberdeen to Central Belt Service Improvement project remain under review and will be subject to investment decisions based on a Final Business Case. In terms of affordability, it has been determined that the project, and associated benefits, can be delivered in a phased manner with the first of those phases being the section from Dundee to Arbroath. This has been communicated to stakeholders including Nestrans and Aberdeen City Council via its City Region Deal Joint Committee.

In 2025, the Buchan Sustainable Transport Study was commissioned by the Campaign for North East Rail and the Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, with funding from the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund.

Reporters, appointed by Scottish Ministers to consider applications for electricity transmission infrastructure are guided by the statutory framework of the Electricity Act 1989 and the associated Code of Practice for inquiries.

In all cases where Scottish Ministers are responsible for deciding applications made under the Electricity Act 1989, submissions made by all parties are fully considered. Weight is not accorded to representations on the basis of the status or identity of the person who made them.

The decision-making process takes into account matters including Scottish Government policy, UK Government policy on reserved matters, National Planning Framework 4, environmental information, consultation responses, views of affected communities and representations made by members of the public, as well as any public inquiry report.

The merits of each proposal are considered on a case-by-case basis, and a careful balance must be struck between the potential impacts of the development and the associated policy, environmental, economic, renewable energy and climate change benefits as well as other local community effects. This ensures that the right developments are planned and approved in the appropriate locations.

Local authorities participating in inquiries are required to provide all financial, legal and technical support required to support their participation. No additional funding is provided by the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government has reformed the consenting process for major electricity infrastructure through the Planning and Infrastructure (Scotland) Act 2025 by replacing the automatic requirement for a public inquiry with a reporter-led examination. This allows procedures such as written submissions, hearings or inquiries to be used only where appropriate, making participation more proportionate, and focussed on key issues relating to the case. By enabling reporters to scope examinations to the issues in dispute, the new approach allows authorities to participate effectively addressing cost and resourcing issues required for full inquiries.

Changes to the automatic Public Local Inquiry trigger for energy consent applications were consulted on by the UK Government in October and November 2024 as part of preparations for the then Planning and Infrastructure Bill. Details of the consultation outcome can be viewed at: Electricity infrastructure consenting in Scotland - GOV.UK. This included engagement with local authorities and opportunities for input from local communities through formal public consultation processes.

The Scottish Government intends to consult later this year on additional measures enabled by the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 which are intended to further improve the efficiency of application processing and minimise resourcing challenges for local authorities. The Scottish Government has no plans at present to establish a dedicated funding mechanism to support local authorities.

Scottish Ministers determine applications made under Section 37 of the Electricity Act 1989 for major electricity transmission infrastructure. The Energy Consents Unit administer these applications on their behalf and there are currently 14 officials directly undertaking this work.

All material considerations raised in representations and submitted by members of the public are carefully considered before the Scottish Ministers reach a decision on an application for energy consent.

The Scottish Government does not routinely record the method of submission of representations. Representations about applications for energy consent, as well as application information and related documents, are publicly available on the Energy Consents Unit portal: https://www.energyconsents.scot/Default.aspx

Scottish Ministers have an ambition to determine priority applications for transmission infrastructure within 52 weeks of the date of application.

Officials have routine meetings with SSEN Transmission in relation toa range of matters. While application handling processes and associated timescales may be discussed as part of routine engagement, no specific date for determination of the proposed Kintore to Tealing electricity transmission line has been confirmed through those discussions.

Determinations by Scottish Ministers will only be taken after careful consideration of all relevant information, the Reporter's assessment and recommendations from the public inquiries.