Scotland will not reach its net zero targets without first empowering the local government sector, MSPs have warned.
A new report by Holyrood’s Net Zero, Energy & Transport Committee has urged the Scottish government to provide councils with better access to the skills and capital needed to reach net zero by 2045.
The committee called for an area-specific place-based approach to tackling climate change, and said Holyrood should give councils the powers they need to make such an approach work.
The committee’s report called for the Scottish government to provide additional financial support to councils in future budget cycles to help them work towards net zero.
A Scottish government spokesperson said that Holyrood is increasing the resources available to local government by over £570m in 2023/24. However, this claim has been challenged by the local government body COSLA.
The Net Zero, Energy & Transport Committee also called on the Scottish government to work with local government on an investment strategy that will attract investment. It also said there should be an expanded role for the Scottish National Investment Bank, to help bring together local government and investors in public-private co-financing.
While acknowledging the progress the Scottish local government sector has made in its net zero efforts, the committee said the sector should take a more consistent approach to net zero planning, budgeting and target-setting and embed net zero decision-taking at senior levels within councils. The report also called for councils to set targets covering all emissions in their area.
Launching the report, convener of the committee, Edward Mountain MSP, said: ‘Over the course of almost a year of evidence-taking, it’s clear that unless key barriers facing local government are dealt with, we will not reach net zero by 2045.
‘Local government is the layer of democracy closest to communities. They have local knowledge and capacity to lead by example and are also uniquely well-placed to form the partnerships we’re going to need at a local and regional level.
‘We saw for ourselves on committee visits across Scotland the leadership and good practice many Councils and their local partners are modelling. But against a backdrop of financial pressure, where Councils feel they are being asked to do more for less, they are struggling to think and plan strategically to maximise their contribution to net zero.
‘We hope that the Scottish government, COSLA and the wider local government sector will pay close attention to the recommendations we have made to enable the scale of transformational and behavioural change required for Scotland to succeed.’
A Scottish government spokesperson said: ‘We acknowledge the critical role that local government – indeed all sectors of our society – will play in the journey to net zero. We will now take the time to carefully consider the report from the Scottish Parliament’s Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee and will respond to the recommendations in due course.’
