Hansard

::I want to take a moment to thank, from the bottom of our hearts, on behalf of Gillian Martin and Mairi Gougeon, our bill teams, our legislation teams, our policy development teams, our officials, our private office and the parliamentary staff. They have put in a hell of a lot of work to get the bill to where it is today, and we owe them an enormous debt of gratitude. I thank them very much from all of us.

I also want to say, as this is Mairi Gougeon’s final bill, that she will be an enormous loss to the Parliament. She has been an amazing person to work with, and rural Scotland has been bettered by the work that she has put in.

At its heart, the Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill is about respect for nature, for our land and for the people who steward it and care for it. It is a bill with both people and nature at its heart, and that is something that I care deeply about. It will deliver for nature and people with ambition and balance at its core. That is why, for the first time, we are putting in place statutory nature restoration targets, which will drive positive on-the-ground actions that will keep us on the trajectory to restore and regenerate nature by 2045.

If future Governments are found to be wanting in that ambition for nature, the bill contains the mechanisms to ensure that the Scottish Parliament can hold them to account. However, it does much more than that. It strengthens the legislation underpinning our two fantastic national parks, and it provides us with additional tools to manage our deer in a way that will be positive for the environment while creating entrepreneurial opportunities as we develop our world-class venison product, delivering new jobs and healthy food for the Scottish nation.

Through the amendments that members have championed, the bill will, if passed, deliver in a range of areas. It will give the Scottish ministers new powers to develop legislation relating to wildfire management and forestry management and new rights to enable crofters and tenants to control deer. That is to name but a few of the progressive amendments that have been added to the bill.

The twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss represent the existential threat of our times. Scotland’s natural environment underpins our economy, our agriculture, our wellbeing, our quality of life, and the pride that we all feel in this land. We all know that not doing anything now is absolutely not an option—it is not an option for any responsible Government. If we want the Scotland of tomorrow to be one in which we have healthy communities, sustainable and quality food production, food security and vibrant rural industries, we need to ensure that our ecosystems thrive.

The bill is not about environment over economy; it is about both. They are two sides of the same coin, and we cannot have one without the other. The bill matters, not because of what it symbolises but because of what it will enable us to deliver. It will create a practical delivery chain and ambitious targets, which will drive real action on the ground—action that will be delivered not just by Government but by the people who know the land best.

The Scottish Government is determined to ensure that its key stakeholders have the tools and support that they need to protect and restore nature in a way that works for rural land managers and communities while building on their stewardship and recognising and respecting their role as the custodians—which we all are—of our iconic land and the species that coexist with us. We will continue to work in partnership with our farmers, crofters, keepers, stalkers, land managers, environmental non-governmental organisations and community organisations to ensure that the measures that we put in place are proportionate, workable and successful and that they deliver benefits not just for nature but for the people of Scotland.

Of course, one bill cannot do everything, although we have certainly packed plenty into this one. Members and stakeholders have raised important points and demanded more action in areas such as marine protection, non-native species, guidance, monitoring and delivery frameworks. We are making headway in those areas, but some issues, particularly those requiring specific technical detail, are better delivered through secondary legislation, strategies or implementation programmes. It is crucial that we focus resources on delivery rather than introduce greater complexity and duplication of effort.

As we draw the debate to a close, it is worth reflecting on the shared effort that has brought us here today. The bill reflects the Parliament at its best. It has been shaped by members across the chamber. We have improved it through engagement, and we are building consensus, including through today’s debate. I hope that the unity of purpose shown by members to tackle the biodiversity crisis and to push the Government to go faster and further to deliver the nature-positive outcomes that we all want will now be reflected in members’ support for the bill.

However, I have to say that I am disappointed in the Tories, because we have made significant efforts to find solutions to the many issues that were raised. We brought them in and asked for their input so that they could contribute to making the bill the success that it is. I can only imagine that it is politics that is getting in the way of passing good legislation.

I welcome the great co-operation from the Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats and all the other—