Chamber and committees

Planning authorities have qualified planning officers who apply their professional analysis and judgement to inform decisions. National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) designates “Green Data Centres” as National Development. NPF4 must be considered, read and applied in the round, accounting for all of its relevant provisions when assessing planning applications. We are considering whether more formal guidance would also help planning authorities. We have already committed to publish guidance on what factors are prevalent in a “green” data centre.

Health Boards have been asked to generate proposals for the walk-in service pilot programme which take into account local issues and experiences. The Scottish Government recognises the needs of the population of North Lanarkshire and has therefore asked NHS Lanarkshire to explore the option of a service in Shotts.

Local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure that funded ELC is available to the children residing within their own area and are also responsible for meeting the statutory guidance requirements in relation to cross-boundary placements.

This guidance is clear that, wherever possible, education authorities should make arrangements that ensure families accessing cross-boundary placements are treated on the same basis as families accessing provision locally. While local authorities do not have a statutory duty to provide funded ELC to children who reside outside their area, they have the power to do so under section 23 of the Education (Scotland) Act (1980).

To ensure families’ choice of provider is not limited by local authority boundaries, the Scottish Government encourages local authorities to work with neighbouring areas through Funding Follows the Child guidance, developed jointly by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and the Scottish Government.

Local authorities hold the statutory duty to ensure that funded ELC is available to the children residing within their own area, and are also responsible for meeting statutory guidance requirements in relation to cross-boundary placements.

The Scottish Government does not collect national data on which local authorities fund and invoice each other for cross-boundary funded early learning and childcare placements. Information on individual local authority cross-boundary policies may be available through local authority websites, or via local authority Early Years teams.

To ensure families’ choice of provider is not limited by local authority boundaries, the Scottish Government encourages local authorities to work with neighbouring areas through Funding Follows the Child guidance, developed jointly by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and the Scottish Government.

On 9th June 2026 the Scottish Government published the Scottish Greenhouse Gas Statistics 2024 official statistics publication. These statistics focus on all Greenhouse Gas emissions rather than specifically carbon dioxide, however they do provide answers to the majority of your question. Please note that specific information on emissions by type of fuel used are only available for electricity generation.

The following tables were obtained by filtering the detailed data extract spreadsheet of the supporting documents of this publication

Table 1: Carbon Dioxide emissions associated with electricity supply over 2020 to 2024 (MtCO2, rounded to 2 D.P.)

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) designates “Green Data Centres” as National Development. Policy 24 of NPF4 supports Digital Infrastructure, encouraging, promoting and facilitating the roll out of digital infrastructure across Scotland to unlock the potential of all our places and the economy. The Scottish Government is a co-commissioner of the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan which will model likely energy demand up to 2050 and the generation approaches required to support that demand. In a response to Martyn Day MSP on Thursday 25 June, I advised that the Scottish Government is urgently considering whether more formal guidance is required to help local planning authorities. In a response to Gillian MacKay MSP on Thursday 25 June, the First Minister set out that he is giving active consideration to whether the Scottish Government should provide planning guidance to balance the rapid expansion of hyperscale data centres with national energy and climate goals, which are vital to our future prosperity.

The following table outlines how many homes have been built as part of successful applications for the Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme (VDLIP) since the fund’s introduction in 2021-22.

Currently there is no requirement for NHS Boards to record and submit data on care in non-standard areas, such as hospital corridors, to Public Health Scotland or the Scottish Government; therefore, the Scottish Government does not hold this data.

The Scottish Government accepts that caring for patients in non-standard patient areas is sub-optimal and we are clear that patients should not routinely be treated in corridors or other non-standard areas.

Where this practice is unavoidable, robust measures must be in place to mitigate risks, including appropriate monitoring of patients and minimising time spent in these areas. Health boards must also take all necessary steps to maintain patient safety, dignity and quality of care.

We are taking decisive action in partnership with Health Boards to address the underlying causes of high acute hospital occupancy which can lead to bed blocking and use of non-standard areas. Our focus is firmly on improving patient flow so that people are admitted, treated, and discharged safely and on time.

As part of our first 100 days commitments, we will deliver a comprehensive plan on Improving Flow in Hospitals which will set out improvement in end-to-end patient flow, ensuring people receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

We are actively considering the feasibility of a national data collection including considering the most meaningful and reliable metrics. Accurately capturing this information consistently at a national level presents complex technical and operational challenges impacted both by definitional variation as well as variation across systems in terms of physical layout, operational practice and existing recording mechanisms.

We are aware from engagement with stakeholders that the prevalence of patients receiving care in non-standard areas is too high. This is clearly not acceptable which is why our key priority remains addressing the underlying causes of high acute hospital occupancy which results in bed blocking and can lead to the provision of care in non-standard areas. We are focusing on improving patient flow so people are admitted, treated, and discharged safely and on time. As part of our first 100 days commitments, we will deliver a plan on Improving Flow in Hospitals which will set out improvement in end-to-end patient flow, ensuring people receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

The question of compliance of planning legislation with Article 6 of the ECHR was considered by the House of Lords in the case of Alconbury v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions. In the Court’s 2001 decision it was found that the nature of the decision making process and the right to challenge decisions in the courts was sufficient to provide an Article 6 compliant procedure.