Hansard

Thank you, Presiding Officer.

I thank the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee for its efforts in scrutinising the draft Scottish climate change adaptation programme. I welcome this debate and the opportunity to discuss how we can respond collectively to the threats and opportunities that Scotland is facing from a changing climate and increasingly unpredictable weather. The latest evidence from the intergovernmental panel on climate change sends a stronger than ever warning that human activity is changing the global climate. The events of the past few weeks are a stark reminder of the importance of action both in preparing for our increasingly unpredictable weather and in moving towards low-carbon living. Rob Gibson was absolutely right to pick up on those issues.

In November, I attended the United Nations climate summit in Warsaw, which took place against the background of the devastating Philippines typhoon. At Warsaw, the international community agreed what is now a very tight timetable towards a new climate treaty to limit global warming to 2° Celsius to be signed in Paris in December 2015. However, despite the global commitment to reduce emissions, climate change is already presenting challenges for Scotland’s distinctive biodiversity and habitats, our built environment and infrastructure, and our remote and, indeed, coastal communities, as Rob Gibson identified. The inertia of the climate system means that some degree of further climate change is inevitable over the coming decades.

The UK’s first climate change risk assessment, published in 2012, shows the risks to and opportunities for Scotland from a changing climate. We must prepare for those changes to minimise the impact and take advantage of the opportunities, although I suspect that in some cases the opportunities will be smaller than the negative impact of climate change. Our Scottish climate change adaptation programme provides the framework that will build Scotland’s resilience to the changing climate.

I am aware that the committee heard evidence from stakeholders representing a wide range of interests; to name but a few, they were the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Transport Scotland, SEPA, NFU Scotland, Scottish Environment LINK, Scottish Natural Heritage, the sustainable Scotland network and the Scotch Whisky Association. That emphasises the wide-ranging nature of the challenge, which presents both threats and opportunities for Scotland’s economy, environment and people. That is why we are committed to consulting on our first statutory Scottish climate change adaptation programme.

No one organisation can address that in isolation. There are complex interactions between and within sectors. Success will depend on organisations, businesses and communities across Scotland accepting responsibility and working in partnership if we are to create a Scotland that is increasingly recognised as an attractive, environmentally conscious and climate-resilient place in which to live, work and invest. In doing so, we will be helping to create a more successful country for all and supporting the foundations for long-term economic prosperity. Our adaptation programme provides a framework for everyone in Scotland to contribute towards the delivery of the objectives within their own organisation, business or community.

The programme reflects the cross-cutting nature of the climate change challenge in the Scottish Government. It draws on action across ministerial portfolios, and my ministerial colleagues were involved in its preparation. I meet regularly with my ministerial colleagues to discuss climate change, and that engagement will continue.

A number of issues were raised by the committee and respondents to the consultation, not all of which can be covered in the context of this short debate. I have provided a written response to issues that were raised by the committee, and the analysis of the consultation responses was published on the Scottish Government website on 10 January. I will respond now to some of the issues that were raised by the convener in his opening speech. I also intend to pick up on some of the issues that were raised by the committee in my closing speech. In particular, I will clarify in my closing speech the monitoring and reporting arrangements for the programme as well as key issues around flooding, ecosystems and our natural environment. I would welcome members’ views on those issues during the debate.

The recent festive period illustrated the pressures that severe weather can create. In general terms, the events, which we considered a number of times in the chamber last week, are examples of the adaptation programme in practice, as they involved dealing with issues such as flooding and disruption to transport and energy networks. The Parliament recognised the excellent work of responders, who were informed of and prepared for potential flood risks through the excellent SEPA and Met Office Scottish flood forecasting service. With the help of such systems, they were able to work together effectively to reduce and manage the impacts of the flooding on the affected communities. In addition, the public were directly warned and informed through the floodline direct warning service. I have asked SEPA to consider what more could be done to bring forward the published flood warning strategy.

Tomorrow, at a pre-planned flooding summit with local authorities, I will help to launch SEPA’s new flood risk and hazard maps. They are an essential tool in supporting the development of flood risk strategies across Scotland, with actions that will help to target efforts to plan and invest in reducing potential impacts in vulnerable areas. This is a long-term programme of work that involves people collectively taking an innovative, joined-up, multi-agency, strategic response to the longer-term challenges that climate change provides.

In addition, the Resilience Advisory Board for Scotland, which is the national forum that brings together Scotland’s statutory and voluntary emergency responder organisations to discuss cross-sector working, will meet on 22 January. Members will discuss lessons learned from the experience of activations in response to recent weather events.

The important role of the preparations that are made by individuals and communities is recognised, and the Scottish Government has published guidance for communities on community emergency planning on the ready Scotland website. An example of community emergency planning in action during the recent period of severe weather is the great work of members of the Eyemouth resilient communities group in the Scottish Borders. I am sure that Claudia Beamish is familiar with its work. When the community was threatened by flooding in December, the group took part in a multi-agency meeting with statutory emergency responders and it subsequently played an active role, in partnership with Scottish Borders Council, in checking on residents in the harbour area of the town. Through our adaptation programme, we will continue to develop and promote resources that support such capacity building in communities, and through our support for adaptation Scotland we will continue to ensure that there is wider engagement with communities on the objectives of the programme.

The convener picked up on social justice. Through the adaptation programme, we will continue to support measures to understand the effects of climate change on people, homes and communities and to build communities’ resilience against climate change impacts, and particularly impacts on vulnerable people. We will reflect progress in future adaptation programmes and in our annual reports to the Parliament.

Wider engagement will be key to delivering our adaptation objectives. Local authorities and other public bodies, businesses, voluntary organisations and communities will be central in helping Scotland to build resilience against the impacts of climate change. Our support for adaptation Scotland is a key mechanism through which we are building partnerships and support to deliver our objectives. We are also forging partnerships across the public sector. I chair the public sector climate leaders forum, which includes leaders from across the public and third sectors. Councillor Stephen Hagan is vice-chair of the forum, as well as representing the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities. Working together, the members of the forum aim to provide strong and visible leadership across the public sector and beyond, and to ensure that climate change action is driven more consistently across the sector as a whole.

We are also building partnerships to improve our understanding of the impacts of climate change. ClimateXChange exemplifies the partnership approach as it builds on the strengths of each of its partners, ensuring that our response to climate change is based on the best possible scientific evidence.