Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 10 May 2018
10 May 2018 · S5 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Energy Efficient Scotland
I remind members that the late Conservative member of Parliament Alex Johnstone helpfully made an amendment to the Climate Change (Scotland) Bill in 2009 that provided that for businesses. The Labour party did the same for private houses. It remains unproven that people are motivated by such payments.
More fundamentally, not all councils have made much of the opportunity. We all have a duty to encourage councils to pick up the challenge of what we legislated for in 2009, rather than imagining that new legislation will make a difference, in and of itself.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Linda Fabiani)
SNP
The next item of business is a debate on motion S5M-12140, in the name of Kevin Stewart, on a route map to an energy efficient Scotland. We have quite a bit ...
The Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy (Paul Wheelhouse)
SNP
I am delighted to have the opportunity to open the debate and to discuss the important issue of energy efficiency. Just a week on from the launch of “Energy ...
Claudia Beamish (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I highlight to the minister the issue around training for those jobs, and local training in particular. I encourage him to comment on the opportunities to pl...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
I very much welcome that comment. We clearly wish to think carefully about the labour market impacts of such a major investment programme. My colleague Jamie...
Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP)
SNP
Is the minister aware that better insulated homes have a second level benefit for rural dwellers who are dependent on kerosene, in that, with the reduced ker...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
Stewart Stevenson makes a very good point. I do not personally depend on kerosene, but I know that many constituents in Mr Stevenson’s constituency and peopl...
Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green)
Green
The minister has mentioned the climate bill and its targets. One target was around the provision of renewable heat, and it looks like we will not meet that t...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
I recognise Mark Ruskell’s demand for renewable heat. It is a very strong priority for us. We had progress, but the year before last, we had a setback with t...
John Scott (Ayr) (Con)
Con
Last night, at 2 o’clock in the morning, when I could not sleep, I became aware of the BBC World Service intimating that, in California, it is about to becom...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
We do not have a monopoly on wisdom and will always consider examples from around the world. We very much support solar energy and other renewables at a dome...
Alexander Burnett (Aberdeenshire West) (Con)
Con
There is no doubt that the principles of the Scottish Government’s “Energy Efficient Scotland” route map are supported across the chamber. At a time when Gov...
Liam McArthur (Orkney Islands) (LD)
LD
In the interests of clarity, I should say that although I welcome Mr Burnett’s support, our amendment was not selected for debate, so he will not have an opp...
Alexander Burnett
Con
Well, we certainly support the principles behind it.
Lewis Macdonald (North East Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I welcome Mr Burnett’s support for those principles, because there is a reference to remote, rural and island communities in the Labour amendment. I look for...
Alexander Burnett
Con
We will come to that. Regardless of those exceptional areas, the SNP’s current aim is still 10 years too late. The existing homes alliance Scotland has note...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
Given his urging of the Scottish Government to take more precipitate action, I would be grateful if Alexander Burnett could clarify that the UK Government’s ...
Alexander Burnett
Con
If the minister had been listening, he would have heard me refer to the existing homes alliance and its suggestion of 2025, and the examples of improvements ...
Stewart Stevenson
SNP
I remind members that the late Conservative member of Parliament Alex Johnstone helpfully made an amendment to the Climate Change (Scotland) Bill in 2009 tha...
Alexander Burnett
Con
I agree that we all need to do more at all levels—Government, council and individual household. The minister asked what incentives we could look at, so I hav...
The Minister for Local Government and Housing (Kevin Stewart)
SNP
Mr Burnett talks a lot about incentives. We recently had Tory proposals in the budget to reduce the spending power of the Parliament by half a billion pounds...
Alexander Burnett
Con
It would be unfortunate to push aside this constructive debate on how we can assist our contribution to tackling climate change by tackling energy efficiency...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
Will Mr Burnett take a brief intervention on that point?
Alexander Burnett
Con
I will not, because I have taken more than my share of interventions in this speech. WWF Scotland and the consumer futures unit of Citizens Advice Scotland ...
Kevin Stewart
SNP
The Green amendment was not chosen for debate.
Alexander Burnett
Con
I thank the minister for pointing that out. We would have supported the amendment that the Greens lodged, which called for acceleration in public spending to...
Pauline McNeill (Glasgow) (Lab)
Lab
For clarification, the Labour amendment and the Tory amendment to the Scottish Government motion are the only two amendments that have been selected for deba...
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
Will Pauline McNeill take an intervention?
Pauline McNeill
Lab
I knew that the minister would want to intervene on that point, so I will let him.
Paul Wheelhouse
SNP
Just for clarity’s sake, I say that £146 million is being invested in energy efficiency in the current financial year, as I said in my opening statement. I a...
Pauline McNeill
Lab
That was helpful. In this debate, it is important that we draw all that together, so that we can see what is going on. However, the essential point is that i...