Committee
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee 25 January 2022
25 Jan 2022 · S6 · Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Item of business
Role of Local Government in Delivering Net Zero
Welcome back. For our next agenda item, we welcome our third set of witnesses for the committee’s inquiry into the role of local government and its cross-sector partners in financing and delivering a net zero Scotland. Today, we have representatives from the business and finance sectors. For the first panel, I am pleased to welcome Tracy Black, Scotland director of the Confederation of British Industry, and Barry McCulloch, head of policy for the Federation of Small Businesses Scotland. I thank them for accepting our invitation. We are delighted that they are able to join us. I apologise that we are running slightly behind schedule. We have just about over an hour for this panel and will move straight to questions. My first question relates to the interaction between the business sector and local authorities in delivering net zero targets. During the 26th United Nations climate change conference of the parties—COP26—in Glasgow, we heard about the business sector’s increasingly important role in delivering net zero. In previous evidence sessions, the committee heard concerns about whether local authorities have the necessary capacity, expertise and resource to deliver ambitious net zero targets, including in planning, transport and heat in buildings. How do those challenges and the limitations that local authorities face impact on CBI and FSB members’ own transition to net zero and their wider ability to contribute to meeting national net zero targets in Scotland?
In the same item of business
The Convener
Con
Welcome back. For our next agenda item, we welcome our third set of witnesses for the committee’s inquiry into the role of local government and its cross-sec...
Tracy Black (CBI Scotland)
That is a large question with a lot of parts to it. I will do my best to answer it. There is no doubt that, across our membership, we have seen a step chang...
The Convener
Con
Thank you. Barry McCulloch, I put the same question to you.
Barry McCulloch (Federation of Small Businesses Scotland)
Good morning. It is a relevant question, given that we have only eight years or so to cut our emissions by 70 per cent and we have ambitious climate change t...
The Convener
Con
Thank you both for your answers. You have picked up on a number of issues that members will want to explore with their questions. I will focus on the issue ...
Tracy Black
That is a really good point. The majority of our businesses are probably in old building stock. There is already a lot of debate and confusion about what sol...
The Convener
Con
As you say, there is an enormous number of complex issues to be addressed and there is not a huge amount of time to address them. I put the same question to ...
Barry McCulloch
The challenges to decarbonising non-domestic properties are absolutely massive and the timescales are incredibly tight. It is a commitment that will require ...
The Convener
Con
Thank you both for those responses. You raised several points that members want to come in on.
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
What are the top planning, practice and regulation changes that will be most helpful for your membership to deliver net zero in the short term and the long t...
Tracy Black
One of the key things is that many of our members operate across local authorities and across the UK. Where possible, standardisation across local authoritie...
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
Thank you—it was comprehensive. I ask Barry McCulloch the same question.
Barry McCulloch
Tracy Black made good points about standardisation and the need for prompt decision making. However, in truth, small businesses do not necessarily see the pl...
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
I have a separate question, convener. Do you want to bring in Mark Ruskell on this issue, or can I move on?
The Convener
Con
Ask your question, and then I will bring in Mark Ruskell after that.
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
We have heard about the importance of speed and scale in collaboration between the public sector, councils and private companies when it comes to co-investme...
Tracy Black
I am sorry, but my screen froze just when you were asking your question. Could you ask it again?
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
It is about the speed and scale of co-investment between councils and private companies, which is important if we are to deliver on net zero. The Subsidy Con...
Tracy Black
I am trying to think what the correct response is. I would probably want to go back and speak to the team on that. I do not know whether this directly answe...
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
Thank you; it would be good to hear back from you on that. Barry, it would be good to hear from you with regard to small businesses that might be doing join...
Barry McCulloch
The new subsidy control regime might cause delays to co-investment. I confess that it is not an issue that has crossed our desks, but I am happy to pick that...
Fiona Hyslop
SNP
Thank you.
Mark Ruskell
Green
I have a quick supplementary question in relation to Tracy Black’s last answer. I presume that you are in favour of the free market, and there will be market...
Tracy Black
Inaudible.—market conditions, because time is not our friend on that one, to let us play it out. We have a very tight deadline of a number of years. Plenty o...
Barry McCulloch
Let me complement that answer and reflect on a couple of the committee’s previous evidence sessions. A common theme that is coming through is that local auth...
Mark Ruskell
Green
Okay. Back to you, convener.
The Convener
Con
I will bring in Monica Lennon, then Liam Kerr.
Monica Lennon
Lab
Good morning, panel. I want to focus on procurement, which has been mentioned. The committee has heard about some of the challenges and we have had some good...
Barry McCulloch
I will come in first, as Tracy Black has been answering first for much of the session. The answer to the question depends on the type of business that we are...
Monica Lennon
Lab
It is good to hear you mention community wealth building.