That the Parliament believes new hyper-scale data centres in Scotland will only be approved where they have met robust environmental impact assessments, which will take account of any impact on the amenity of any neighbouring communities; welcomes the Scottish Government's commitment to the swift creation of national planning and spatial guidance by the end of the year for the determination of conditions, under which data centre development should be permitted; believes that, in order to gain planning approval, any proposals for data centres should demonstrate how they would minimise emissions for their energy usage and not impact on water usage and how community wealth benefit will be built in to the business case; notes that best practice for the creation of data centres includes steps to support decarbonisation and to recycle waste heat for wider community use; recognises the increased utilisation of AI and further development of such technology; calls for strong domestic regulation of and international collaboration on the development and use of AI systems to ensure its safe and ethical use, and to address the scale and seriousness of potential threats the use of AI may pose now and in the future; believes that Scotland has great strengths in data science and energy, and as such, a clear industrial strategy is required to maximise the economic benefits of AI data centre developments, including jobs and wages; calls on the Scottish Government to bring forward a clear definition of what constitutes a hyperscale data centre and to issue national planning guidance, alongside robust environmental standards and assessments, to inform national and local decision-making on current and potential hyperscale data centre planning applications; notes that such guidance must provide clarity on spatial, community and social impacts of any such developments and that decisions must be based on community consent; agrees that consideration must be given to implementing community benefit schemes and adjusting the non-domestic rates regime or other tax measures to ensure that economic benefits are accrued by communities in which such data centres are sited; calls on the Scottish Government to report back to Parliament on the development of national planning guidance by the end of the current calendar year and to publish this guidance in full within 12 months, and believes that no decisions on planning or consenting in relation to such applications should be made until this has been completed.
Result 80 for, 26 against, 15 abstained, 8 did not vote Agreed
That the Parliament agrees to the introduction of a moratorium on planning applications for new hyperscale data centres until a national strategy and updated planning guidance are produced, which takes into account the cumulative impacts on energy demand and the environment.
Submitted by: Graham Simpson, Central Scot and Lothians West, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Motion reference: S7M-01177.1
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Submitted by: David Green, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Motion reference: S7M-01177.2
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Submitted by: Daniel Johnson, Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Motion reference: S7M-01177.3
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Supported by: Paul Sweeney
Result 94 for, 26 against, 0 abstained, 9 did not vote Agreed
Submitted by: Rachael Hamilton, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Motion reference: S7M-01177.4
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Supported by: James Adams
Submitted by: Hannah Mary Goodlad, Shetland Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, September 15, 2026
Motion reference: S7M-01177.5
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Supported by: Tom Arthur, Martyn Day, Stephen Flynn, Jenny Gilruth
Result 72 for, 32 against, 16 abstained, 9 did not vote Agreed