John Swinney: Scottish Parliament no longer unified on climate change
Stop Climate Chaos spoke to the First Minister outside the Scottish Parliament to quiz him on his government’s commitments to tackle the climate emergency.
First Minister John Swinney says progress on tackling the climate emergency has stalled because MSPs are no longer unified on the issue.
Dozens of campaigners from Stop Climate Chaos questioned the First Minister outside the Scottish Parliament on Thursday on his Government’s commitments to tackling climate change.
Mr Swinney said the climate emergency was “at the heart” of his Government’s policies, but conceded MSPs are no longer showing solidarity on the issue.
He said: “I think members of Parliament are informed about climate action, but if I express a worry, I don’t think there is as much cohesion on the necessity of action that we used to have on this.
“There was solidarity around climate action only a few years ago and the Parliament was on one unified position, but now it has fractured.
“The overwhelming majority [of MSPs] are in favour of climate action. But there is a fracturing in that consensus and that’s a source of anxiety for me because we need unified, society-wide action to be effective.”
The First Minister also told the climate campaigners there would be Scottish Government representation at the COP30 climate conference in Brazil later this year - but it might not be him personally.
Mr Swinney said: “Dialogue is happening on the COP30 programme and whether it is practical for me to go, but there are a number of moving parts.
“I can give you assurance that we are committed to having Scottish Government representation at COP30 because there have been really significant elements that have come about because of our interventions [in the past]. But don’t take that to mean I don’t understand or appreciate the importance of having a voice there.”
The group called for homes that are warmer and cheaper to heat, making public transport more accessible and affordable, and protecting Scotland’s land and seas.
This comes after the Scottish Government abandoned its annual climate change targets last year after repeatedly missing them. However, the pledge to reach net zero by 2045 has been retained.
The demonstration outside Holyrood comes ahead of Scotland’s new climate change plan being published. This plan will set out how the Government will meet its target to reach net zero by 2045.
The plan will be published just months before the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.
Mike Robinson, chair of Stop Climate Chaos Scotland, was with the campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament. He said: “There is so much desire to see the Government take action on climate change and deliver a strong climate action plan.
“They want reassurance that politicians are taking this seriously. We don’t think action has happened over the last five years when the targets were made.
“We know this Government has committed to this but just hasn’t delivered, partly because the issue has become too partisan and become too much of a political football.
“Eighty per cent of people want this to happen - it is an all-party issue.”
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