Hansard

::I am pleased to speak this evening for the Scottish Liberal Democrats. Throughout the bill’s process, it has been encouraging to see the passion and care for the environment that is evident among members of the Parliament.

I place on record my thanks to the convener, members and clerks of the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee and to the legislation team. I also thank the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy, the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands, the Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity and Scottish Government officials for their constructive engagement with me. I also thank all the stakeholders who gave evidence at stage 1, sent briefings and met me to discuss the bill and to share their expertise. In particular, I thank Scottish Environment LINK, RSPB Scotland and Scottish Land & Estates for working with me on amendments.

Scottish Liberal Democrats recognise that the climate crisis and biodiversity loss are not separate issues but are deeply intertwined. Scotland is on the front line of biodiversity loss, with one in nine species at risk of national extinction. Scotland ranks 212th out of 240 countries for biodiversity intactness. Part 1 of the bill enables the Scottish ministers to set targets for improving biodiversity. Targets have the potential to focus efforts to address the biodiversity crisis.

I was pleased that my amendment at stage 3 was agreed to. It explicitly links the new statutory targets to the existing biodiversity duty, so Scotland’s public bodies and office holders will have to take the biodiversity targets into account when fulfilling their public sector biodiversity duty. That will align the whole public sector behind the implementation of the targets, removing the risk of a top-down approach and improving the consistency of approach to biodiversity ambitions across the public sector. Invasive non-native species, or INNS, are a key driver of biodiversity loss in Scotland. Although in the end, I did not move my amendment that would have given legal underpinning to the forthcoming national INNS action plan, the debates that we have had on the issue have underscored the need for action, and I note that the cabinet secretary has put on record the Scottish Government’s commitment to doing so.

I look forward to the outcomes of the Environmental Standards Scotland INNS investigation, and I trust that the recommendations resulting from that work will feed into the INNS plan in collaboration with stakeholders. Although I will not be here then, I will be watching.

Several marine issues were raised in the debates on amendments. Although, according to the bill, targets may be created for both terrestrial and marine environments, it is not the appropriate vehicle for other marine matters that require appropriate evidence bases, consultation and co-design with stakeholders. Amendments were proposed that would have cut across existing and on-going marine work including the inshore fisheries management improvement programme and the new national marine plan, where nature recovery will be a key objective alongside addressing climate change and supporting a sustainable marine economy. However, I hope that the Scottish Government takes note of the strength of the frustration that has been expressed about the length of time that those things are taking and the concerns about the resourcing of the marine directorate. My comments on those matters are well documented.

Part 2 of the bill was removed by the committee at stage 2 due to concerns that its provisions could weaken nature protections in Scotland. I appreciate that the Scottish Government listened to those concerns and did not attempt to re-insert those provisions.

Part 4 of the bill modernises the provisions of the Deer (Scotland) Act 1996. As I underscored at stage 1, it is important that the changes do not impact the trust in the sector that underpins voluntary deer management, which is vital for controlling deer numbers in Scotland. Consultation and co-design with stakeholders will be vital to ensuring that we get the code of practice right.

I was pleased to lodge amendments to ensure that local communities and neighbouring land managers will be properly considered when deer control schemes are proposed, giving them greater involvement in processes that might affect them. I am also pleased that my amendments on the muirburn licensing scheme, which was created by the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024, were supported. The changes will enable high-quality muirburn training to take place under licence and improve regulatory clarity for the making of muirburn on peatland while retaining strong environmental oversight.

At stage 1, I stated that we had an opportunity to take action on the environment. By passing the bill this evening, we will take an important step towards realising that opportunity. Scottish Liberal Democrats will support the bill at decision time.