Meeting of the Parliament 26 June 2024
No—I have taken too many interventions already.
Scotland’s economy grew by 67 per cent in real terms between 1990 and 2022, at the same time as we cut in half our greenhouse gas emissions. That demonstrates that tackling climate change and growing our economy absolutely go hand in hand.
We want to combine Scotland’s vibrant entrepreneurial nation, world-leading academic and research institutions, valuable natural resources and our businesses and communities in a shared agenda to deliver net zero. As part of that, we will help businesses and investors through the development and delivery of our green industrial strategy, so that the people of Scotland can share in the enormous economic opportunities of the global transition to net zero.
One of the key areas in which we are seizing those opportunities is in our vision for Scotland to become a renewables powerhouse, which the people of Scotland will see the benefit from. In 2022, 87.9 per cent of electricity generation came from zero carbon or low-carbon sources. That has already brought huge benefits to Scotland in economic growth, export opportunities and well-paid skilled jobs. That was evidenced by recent significant investments by Sumitomo at Nigg and Haventus at Ardersier.
ScotWind is absolutely central to that ambition. As the world’s largest commercial round for floating offshore wind, it has put Scotland at the forefront of offshore wind development globally.
We see huge potential for Scotland in hydrogen production, too. There is great demand for green hydrogen, and Scotland is well placed to develop a significant hydrogen sector that will create a lot of jobs and income for the nation as a whole, whether by using hydrogen domestically or by exporting it to other countries.
Similarly, our approach to net zero will ensure support for our commitment to ending child poverty. For example, our policy of making public transport more accessible and affordable is a key part of that approach. Our Scotland-wide bus schemes offer free travel to a larger percentage of the population than is the case anywhere else in the United Kingdom, and our ScotRail’s peak fares removal pilot is a first in the UK.