Chamber and committees

It is the Scottish Ministers who determine applications made under sections 36 and 37 of the Electricity Act 1989. The Energy Consents Unit administers these applications on their behalf.

Following consent, developers are typically required to commence development within either three or five years of the decision date, depending on the terms of the consent. However, information on whether or how many approved developments have been commenced s not systematically recorded.

Developing evidence-based and effective fisheries management measures for more than 160 sites and areas within the inshore region has been a challenging process.

The Scottish Government is considering plans to deliver the commitment to temporarily reduce the power of attorney registration fees within this parliamentary term, and will engage with relevant stakeholders to do so.

The Scottish Government recognises the serious and escalating threat from wildfires in Scotland due to climate change and the importance of strengthening public awareness of wildfire risks and responsible outdoor behaviour and access.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) produces its own annual wildfire prevention and awareness campaign, aimed at reducing human-caused fires by highlighting these risks.

This year’s campaign was officially launched on Thursday, 5 March, alongside the Scottish Government’s Wildfire Strategic Action Plan. The key message of the campaign is that there is no such thing as a harmless fire. It includes targeted paid promotion, digital content, media engagement, and partnership working to extend its reach.

SFRS also works closely with local authorities, National Park authorities, public bodies and land managers to ensure that clear and consistent public messaging on wildfire risk is conveyed in a timely, effective and coordinated way.

In addition to the SFRS campaign, a multi-channel campaign supporting the new recreational fire byelaw in the Cairngorms National Park has promoted a “no flame, no spark” message through physical road signage, social media advertising, video and influencer activity. It has reached nearly 1.5 million individuals and generated around 4.3 million impressions, with more than 100 businesses and community groups engaging with campaign materials.

For summer 2026, this work will be continued and strengthened through coordinated national and local activity, including targeted awareness campaigns and continued promotion of safe behaviours relating to campfires, disposable barbecues and other wildfire risks.

Similarly, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Authority continues to deliver sustained public awareness activity through ranger engagement, byelaws, media campaigns and national partnerships with SFRS and others to ensure consistent messaging on wildfire risks. Most recently, it hosted a press conference in Balloch alongside Police Scotland to convey key public safety messages, with coverage across local and national online, print, TV and radio outlets.

These combined efforts demonstrate an ongoing, collaborative approach to strengthening public awareness of wildfire risks in Scotland.

We recognise the vital role of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) in tackling wildfires and remain committed to sustaining that capability. The SFRS 2026-27 overall budget provides an additional £23.8 million, taking total funding to £436 million, demonstrating the continued support to the Service to deliver the high standard of services required to keep Scotland safe. In addition, the Scottish Government’s Wildfires Strategic Action Plan sets out a coordinated approach to preventing, preparing for and responding to wildfires.

The allocation of SFRS resources to respond to wildfire incidents, including the deployment of specialist wildfire capability, equipment and staffing, is an operational matter for SFRS. The SFRS spend on its wildfire strategy has been circa £1.6 million over the course of its 3 year roll-out. As part of its strategy, SFRS has reviewed and invested in equipment, vehicles and training to strengthen its response to wildfires, particularly in rural areas.

In response to the 2025 wildfire season, SFRS has invested in equipment, including four new wildfire support units with enhanced equipment (Alford, Oban, Galashiels and Dornoch) and two new interim wildfire units (Lockerbie and Thurso), and is also delivering controlled burn training for firefighters. SFRS already has more than 30 fire stations equipped with dedicated wildfire resources, as well as several wildfire tactical advisers who can provide strategic support at incidents.

SFRS also manages the Community Asset Register (CAR) - a Scotland wide database of trained volunteers and equipment – ready and willing to respond and offer support during emergency situations, such as a wildfire incident.

The Scottish Government is committed to reforming the energy consenting process to ensure it delivers timely results and takes a pragmatic approach. We continue to maintain a robust consenting regime, working to existing commitments for faster decision-making timescales. This includes the ambitions set out in the Onshore Wind Sector Deal and the Priority Applications for Transmission Infrastructure Guidance to determine applications within 52 weeks where possible.

The Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 provided Scottish Ministers with new regulation-making powers, including mandating pre-application engagement, introducing an acceptance stage, and streamlining the consenting process by establishing clearer statutory timescales.

Ministers will consult later this year on how these powers should be used to improve the consenting process for all stakeholders, with findings informing secondary legislation.

We will establish a ScotWind Wealth Fund by the end of this Parliament to ensure that Scotland’s future generations can benefit from our wealth of renewables.

The failure of successive UK governments to establish a dedicated Oil and Gas wealth fund means Scotland has not fully benefited from our wealth of natural resources.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00272 on 3 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.

Large-scale, long-duration energy storage, such as pumped hydro storage, will play a critical role in lessening our dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation, supporting our net zero ambitions.

It will help to maximise our significant renewable energy generating capacity by providing flexibility to the grid ensuring there is a continuous resilient and secure supply of electricity to households and businesses.

Whilst the UK Government's proposals for a cap and floor mechanism for long duration electricity storage are welcome, it is vital they continue to engage with industry to ensure the finer details of this mechanism can maximise the generation and economic potential pumped hydro storage.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00062 on 2 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.