A blueprint for tackling climate change must set tougher targets for emissions reductions from transport and agriculture, the two most polluting sectors, MSPs have demanded.
Four of Holyrood’s committees have just published their reports on the Scottish Government’s draft climate change plan, which ministers used to set out strategies for cutting greenhouse gases over the next 15 years.
MSPs on the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee called on ministers to use the plan to set “equally challenging” targets for all sectors of the economy.
Convener Graeme Dey also said committee members had been “disappointed” by the lack of detailed information that was contained in the document.
More detail should be given on emissions reductions across all sectors, the committee said, calling for the final plan to set out “specific clear and transparent” proposals for this.
Similarly, members of the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee said emission target reductions for the agricultural sector were not ambitious enough and should be more detailed.
The committee also said more consideration should be given to policies to encourage drivers out of their cars as part of the Government’s climate change efforts.
The Local Government and Communities Committee called on ministers to provide more information on how to change behaviour in communities where tackling climate change is not seen as a priority.
MSPs on the Economy Committee called on Holyrood minsters to do what they could to support the renewable energy sector.
In addition, they urged ministers not to delay the process of changing how homes and properties are heated, moving away from gas to more environmentally-friendly forms of energy.
Mr Dey said: “Scotland has ambitious climate change targets and the Scottish Parliament wants to make sure that plans to reduce emissions are as robust and achievable as possible.
“Our committee feels that it is crucial for all of Scotland’s sectors to play their part in reducing emissions.
“Specifically, transport and agriculture – which are the biggest contributors in terms of creating harmful carbon emissions – must, in the opinion of the committee, be required to make a greater contribution in tackling climate change.
“In order for Scotland to truly be a world leader, the Scottish Government needs to ensure all sectors are equally challenged in creating a climate-friendly, low-carbon Scotland.”
Mr Dey told how the committee was “disappointed at the lack of detailed information in the draft plan”, adding that “in order to come to a view on how robust and achievable the targets are, we must have considerably more data around some of the specific measures”.
He also stated: “Not enough emphasis appears to have been placed upon improving everyday habits in order to combat climate change. We believe this is a missed opportunity.
“That’s why we’ve recommended that the science of behaviour change should be included in the final plan, in order to empower the Scottish public to make lifestyle changes that can make a huge difference.”
Climate Change Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said: “Our draft Climate Change Plan sets out a package of transformational measures and interventions across transport, heat, electricity generation and energy efficiency which will help us build on our world leading climate change ambitions and reduce emissions by 66% by 2032.
“We have already achieved our 2020 targets six years early, and this is something that we should be proud of.
“This draft plan sets out the real on the ground changes that need to happen across our economy to achieve our ambitious future targets and has been developed to ensure it both meets the climate change targets and is realistic and workable.
“We welcome the publication of the four committee reports as parliamentary scrutiny is an important step in shaping the final plan.
“We will consider the reports along with submissions that have come directly to us, when finalising the Climate Change Plan and moving into the delivery phase.”
Green environment spokesman Mark Ruskell said: “This plan is supposed to set out credible policies and funding for measures to reduce climate change emissions.
“Sadly, it is utterly lacking in detail and appears to give up on key issues that we need to progress.
“The plan bizarrely assumes even more traffic on our roads, with ministers pinning hopes on a magical overnight switch to electric vehicles.
“They seem to have given up on investing in safer streets for walking and cycling, and in public transport.
“There’s also no effort to enforce sustainable land use despite the warnings from experts that agriculture is about to overtake energy as the biggest source of our climate emissions.”
