Scotland’s Climate Change plan ‘doesn’t add up’ warn experts

Experts and campaigners concerned that the Scottish Government’s Climate Change plan ‘doesn’t add up.’ 

Experts and campaigners have questioned the modelling used by Government officials to predict future changes in emissions. They have also challenged the government’s over-relliance on technologies such as Carbon Capture and large-scale hydrogen from fossil fuels.

Cabinet Secretary Roseanna Cunningham will defend the Government’s Climate Plan update at the Holyrood Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee.

The experts and campaigners have expressed concern that the Government’s prediction of the impact of policies is not properly connected to the policies chosen.

Chris Stark, CEO of the Scottish Government’s official advisors, the UK Committee on Climate Change, said: ‘The modelling exercise is almost completely removed from the policy exercise in the document. Therefore, I am not at all clear about whether the policies and proposals in the document are there to deliver the emissions envelope.

‘There is nothing in the report that tells me the answer to the question that you asked me about whether the policies are sufficient; I cannot tell you what the emissions reductions associated with those policies and proposals are.

In related news, according to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), Scotland is in a unique positition to become the first UK nation to reach net-zero.

Despite the ongoing uncertainty of COVID-19, the report has highlighted that Scotland is in a unique position to deliver a green recovery when it publishes its updated Climate Change Plan in November.

According to the report, Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions fell by 31% in the decade 2008-2018, faster than any other nation in the UK.

This was predominantly led by action in the power sector, where renewable energy has tripled and fossil-fuel generation has fallen by more than 70% in the past decade.

The CCC has highlighted that harnessing this progress could put Scotland ahead of the rest of the UK.

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