Chamber and committees

There are currently no plans to meet with representatives of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Campaign.

The Scottish Government will be sending a delegation to Brazil led by myself, alongside three supporting officials. The Scottish Government’s key priorities include engaging with partners to strengthen subnational climate cooperation, promoting Scotland’s domestic climate and energy achievements as well as our successful climate justice and loss and damage programming and advocating for greater recognition of states, regions and devolved governments within global climate policies and processes and for the scaling up of good quality climate finance that meets the needs of the most vulnerable.

My visit to COP30 will include engagement with Regions4 and Under2. This will deliver on our Programme for Government commitment to lead on climate action internationally, using our leadership roles in Regions4 and Under2 to bring devolved governments together to agree ambitious actions.

We are responding to investor interest which has identified data centre sites that utilise our renewable energy sources while exploring opportunities to recycle waste heat from these facilities into the wider community. While data centres are very large consumers of energy, Scotland’s abundant renewable energy generating capacity presents an opportunity for the country to become a leader in green data centres. Local authorities will assess any planning application for data centres in the first instance. As a matter of law, all planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Application of planning judgement to the circumstances of an individual situation remains essential to all decision making, informed by principles of proportionality and reasonableness. Should Scottish Ministers be asked to make a final decision, then similar processes would be observed.

Scotland is committed to being an international leader on climate justice: our £36 million Climate Justice Fund has demonstrated this commitment and supports those most affected by the climate crisis in ways that are participatory, rights-based and inclusive. We are currently considering options for Scottish Government attendance at and around COP 30 and we will announce plans in due course.

We know that the earlier cancer is diagnosed the easier it is to treat, and that early diagnosis is particularly crucial for people with pancreatic cancer due to known poor outcomes for this devastating disease. This is why we continue to invest in our Detect Cancer Earlier (DCE) Programme. Detect Cancer Earlier’s ‘Be The Early Bird’ campaign aiming to reduce fear of cancer and empower those with possible symptoms to act early. This re-ran in September 2025 to prompt health-seeking behaviour.

We published clinically refreshed Scottish Referral Guidelines (SRGs) for Suspected Cancer, including pancreatic, on 6 August 2025. These support primary care clinicians to identify those with symptoms suspicious of cancer and identify those who require urgent assessment by a specialist. This will ensure that people are on the right pathway at the right time. Furthermore, I joined the First Minister at a roundtable held with key stakeholders , including Sir Chris Hoy and Lady Sarra Hoy, in August to discuss what more needs to be done in Scotland, specifically to ensure those groups of men most at risk can access the diagnosis and support they need.

We have also launched six Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services (RCDSs) across Scotland. These are ruling cancer in or out faster for those with non-specific symptoms, supporting our Earlier Cancer Diagnosis Vision. Hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) cancers, including pancreatic cancer, are among the most common cancers found through the RCDSs. Independent evaluation in 2024 found that HPB cancers made up 17% of the cancers found.

Further to this, we have committed in the Cancer Action Plan 2023-2026 to invest in improving the pathways of less survivable cancers, particularly hepatocellular carcinoma and pancreatic cancer, aiming to shorten the time to staging and agreeing treatment options.

To that end, the Scottish Government commissioned the Scottish Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Network (SHPBN) to develop standardised pathways that improve outcomes for people with HPB cancers, working with NHS Boards, third sector organisations and patients where most appropriate.

I will continue to keep Parliament updated as this work progresses.

The Scottish Government is leading efforts to put communities at the heart of Scotland’s energy transition. In 2024, renewables developers offered around £30 million in community benefits, supporting local priorities and inclusive growth under our Good Practice Principles.

On 22 October, we published consultation responses and analysis on community benefits from net zero energy developments. This evidence will inform refreshed guidance to strengthen delivery, ensure meaningful outcomes, and support a just transition. We continue to engage stakeholders ahead of publishing updated guidance in the second half of 2026.

While community benefits remain voluntary, we continue to press the UK Government to introduce a mandatory scheme for mature technologies and a robust GB-wide voluntary framework for emerging technologies to ensure communities share in the wealth of Scotland’s natural resources.

The Cancer Action Plan for Scotland 2023-2026 commits to improving data collection for secondary cancers, starting this process with secondary breast cancer. The Scottish Government is working with Public Health Scotland to review options in relation to collecting data on secondary breast cancer in Scotland.

Officials are expecting advice from Public Health Scotland imminently on this matter. We aim to make a final decision on data collection by the completion of the Cancer Action Plan in 2026.

The Scottish Government continues to support a wide variety of marine science to ensure there is a strong evidence base to support marine management and the Blue Economy Vision. This includes the Scottish Government’s Science, Evidence, Data and Digital Portfolio, as well as directly commissioned science, and collaboration with a strong academic presence in Scotland through the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Scotland (MASTS), other UK administrations and international partners. This is reflected in the Scottish Government’s Marine Science and Innovation Strategy, which was published in 2024, and the appointment of an independent Chief Scientific Advisor Marine. Furthermore, in 2025 following consultation with Scotland’s academic marine science community, the Marine and Freshwater Areas of Research Interest was published.

The Scottish Government recognises the vital contribution from the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) in advancing marine science and innovation. SAMS is a recipient of Scottish public support through funding mechanisms administrated by the Scottish Funding Council as well as individual grants for goods and services paid for by the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government is investing £3.5 million in Argyll and Bute Growth Deal projects led by SAMS including: £1 million for SAMS’s Centre for International Seaweed and Shellfish Development (C-SSIDe), commercialising world-leading research in seaweed and shellfish and driving growth in these high-value sectors; and £2.5 million for STEM Hub North, an ocean-focused outreach centre to develop marine skills that will help grow the region’s blue economy, located at the European Marine Science Park which is run by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, in partnership with SAMS and Scottish Development International.

The Scottish Government continues to support SAMS marine research endeavours, e.g. contributing to tendered grants through the Marine Fund Scotland and to PhD studentships, in addition to a long history and ongoing collaboration with Marine Directorate scientists, which underpins many aspects of SAMS's work and jointly contributes to Scotland's leadership in a sustainable and resilient blue economy.