Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) Wednesday 9 June 2021 Session 6 © Parliamentary copyright. Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Information on the Scottish Parliament’s copyright policy can be found on the website - www.parliament.scot or by contacting Public Information on 0131 348 5000 Wednesday 9 June 2021 CONTENTS Col. PORTFOLIO QUESTION TIME ............................................................................................................................... 1 NET ZERO, ENERGY AND TRANSPORT ................................................................................................................ 1 Gas-fired Boilers (Phasing Out) .................................................................................................................... 1 Tarbolton Landfill .......................................................................................................................................... 2 Incineration of Waste .................................................................................................................................... 3 Queensferry Crossing ................................................................................................................................... 5 Road and Rail Infrastructure (South of Scotland) ......................................................................................... 6 Net Zero Targets (Community Support) ....................................................................................................... 8 Oil and Gas and Energy Transition Strategic Leadership Group ................................................................. 9 Public Transport Connectivity (Glasgow) ................................................................................................... 10 RURAL AFFAIRS AND ISLANDS .......................................................................................................................... 11 Regional Land Use Partnerships ................................................................................................................ 11 Land Reform (Co-operation Agreement) .................................................................................................... 13 Farming (New Entrants) ............................................................................................................................. 14 Island Lifeline Services (Disruption) ........................................................................................................... 15 Farming and Food Production Future Policy Group ................................................................................... 16 Food and Drink Sector (East Kilbride) ........................................................................................................ 18 Island Communities (Scottish Government Priorities) ................................................................................ 18 Sand Eel Fishing (European Union Quota) ................................................................................................ 20 CORONAVIRUS ACTS REPORT .......................................................................................................................... 22 Statement—[John Swinney]. The Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery (John Swinney) ............................. 22 CLIMATE EMERGENCY ...................................................................................................................................... 34 Motion moved—[Michael Matheson]. Amendment moved—[Liam Kerr]. Amendment moved—[Monica Lennon]. Amendment moved—[Mark Ruskell]. Amendment moved—[Alex Cole—Hamilton]. The Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport (Michael Matheson) ..................................... 34 Liam Kerr (North East Scotland) (Con)....................................................................................................... 38 Monica Lennon (Central Scotland) (Lab) ................................................................................................... 42 Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green) ........................................................................................... 45 Alex Cole-Hamilton (Edinburgh Western) (LD) .......................................................................................... 46 Fiona Hyslop (Linlithgow) (SNP) ................................................................................................................ 49 Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con) ...................................................................................................... 51 Gillian Martin (Aberdeenshire East) (SNP) ................................................................................................. 53 Mercedes Villalba (North East Scotland) (Lab) .......................................................................................... 56 Lorna Slater (Lothian) (Green) ................................................................................................................... 58 Emma Harper (South Scotland) (SNP) ...................................................................................................... 59 Maurice Golden (North East Scotland) (Con) ............................................................................................. 61 Alex Rowley (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) ................................................................................................ 63 Clare Adamson (Motherwell and Wishaw) (SNP) ...................................................................................... 65 Alex Cole-Hamilton ..................................................................................................................................... 67 Mark Ruskell ............................................................................................................................................... 69 Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab) ..................................................................................................................... 71 Brian Whittle (South Scotland) (Con) ......................................................................................................... 74 The Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform (Màiri McAllan) ........................................... 77 BUSINESS MOTION ........................................................................................................................................... 81 Motion moved—[George Adam]—and agreed to. Stephen Kerr (Central Scotland) (Con) ...................................................................................................... 82 Neil Bibby (West Scotland) (Lab) ............................................................................................................... 83 The Minister for Parliamentary Business (George Adam) .......................................................................... 84 PARLIAMENTARY BUREAU MOTIONS ................................................................................................................. 88 Motions moved—[George Adam]. The Minister for Parliamentary Business (George Adam) .......................................................................... 88 DECISION TIME ................................................................................................................................................ 93 SOCIAL JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS COMMISSION REPORT ................................................................................... 102 Stuart McMillan (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP) .................................................................................. 105 Stephen Kerr (Central Scotland) (Con) .................................................................................................... 107 Rona Mackay (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (SNP) ................................................................................... 109 Michael Marra (North East Scotland) (Lab) .............................................................................................. 110 Emma Roddick (Highlands and Islands) (SNP) ....................................................................................... 113 Paul Sweeney (Glasgow) (Lab) ................................................................................................................ 114 The Minister for Social Security and Local Government (Ben Macpherson) ........................................... 116 1 9 JUNE 2021 2 Daniel Johnson: Given the International Scottish Parliament Energy Agency’s recent announcement that gas- fired boilers should be phased out by 2025, some Wednesday 9 June 2021 of those timescales will have to be brought forward somewhat. Indeed, by the end of this session, we [The Deputy Presiding Officer opened the will need to be well on our way to replacing all meeting at 14:00] gas-fired boilers in homes. However, heat pumps cost up to £18,000, and Portfolio Question Time despite the grants that are available, they remain unaffordable to low-income and middle-income Net Zero, Energy and Transport households. Will the cabinet secretary be bringing forward further plans to ensure that this important The Deputy Presiding Officer (Liam component of transition is affordable to all? McArthur): Good afternoon. I remind members that social distancing measures are in place in the Michael Matheson: The short answer is yes. chamber and across the Holyrood campus, and We are continuing