Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school - Proposed Climate Change Bill
15. Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it has given to the inclusion in the climate change bill of measures to support the reduction of emissions through reform of planning and building standards for new and existing domestic and non-domestic buildings to facilitate energy conservation and renewable generation, and through the creation of new incentives to make such improvements possible through grants and reductions in local taxation. (S3O-3755)
The Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change (Stewart Stevenson):
Improving the energy efficiency of buildings and encouraging microgeneration where appropriate—whether through changes to planning, building standards, incentives or other measures—will be important in helping to meet the 80 per cent emissions reduction target that will be set by the proposed Scottish climate change bill.
We are already making progress. For example, we have tripled the support for community and microgeneration, bringing the funding to £13.5 million for this year and the next two years. Since its launch in 1999, we have invested more than £4 million in our interest-free, revolving loan fund to enable small and medium-sized enterprises to invest in energy efficiency technologies. Half of that investment has been made since the change of Government. On 4 June, we launched the energy saving Scotland one-stop-shop advice network, which is funded by the Scottish Government and managed by the Energy Saving Trust.
On future legislation, we have consulted on proposals to grant permitted development rights to microgeneration equipment on domestic buildings, and we intend to produce an amendment to the general permitted development order after the summer recess. We also intend to consult publicly, in the coming months, on energy efficiency measures in housing and non-domestic buildings. Should measures come forward that require primary legislation, the proposed climate change bill may provide a suitable vehicle.
The Deputy Presiding Officer: I call Alex Johnstone.
Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con) rose—
The Deputy Presiding Officer: My apologies, Mr Johnstone. The minister’s answer was so long that I forgot that there was still a supplementary question to come.
Cathy Peattie: Thank you, Presiding Officer.
Does the minister agree that the first steps in dealing with climate change involve convincing local people of the need to do so? Will he consider how the proposed climate change bill can address that? Furthermore, would not improvement grants be a good start in demonstrating the Scottish Government’s commitment to tackling the issues around climate change?
Stewart Stevenson: I will make this answer brief. Local people and individuals in general are key to moving the agenda forward. I hope that we will be able to persuade as many of them as possible to respond to the needs of climate change.
Alex Johnstone: What scope is there likely to be in the climate change bill, through emissions trading or other mechanisms, to generate resource to underpin the Government’s objectives?
Stewart Stevenson: Emissions trading operates at the margins, essentially. It enables us to smooth bumps and dips as we move forward to achieve our climate change objectives. We are working with the United Kingdom Government and the European Union to ensure that we have appropriate trading regimes in place.
