Ariane Burgess
Scottish Green Party · Scotland
“I want to briefly mention an issue that is connected to what David Barratt said about a national emergency briefing. In January, the UK Government published its national security assessment on global biodiversity loss, which states: “Collapse impairs an ecosystem’s ability to provide vital services including clean water, food production,…”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗
“In my rural and island communities, it is sometimes really hard for people to even find a bus. We need the clean heating systems that our EU neighbours have enjoyed for decades. We also need a thriving natural environment, which will be the key in supporting us to adapt to climate change.”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗
“The Scottish Greens campaigned on the idea of an agricultural transition insurance fund—we want to see £500 million of the agricultural budget put into it, because farmers need certainty. We are now in unknown territory when it comes to what we are doing in respect of our land use.”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗
“I sat on two committees in the previous session—the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee and the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee— that scrutinised the climate change plan, and we heard evidence from countless stakeholders that they did not feel confident that there was an adequate delivery plan in place.”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗
“We must support farmers to move to nature-friendly, regenerative farming. Those pioneers have moved away from nitrogen use, they understand soil biology and they are choosing smaller herds and mob grazing. We have legislated for regenerative agriculture, but we do not have the underpinning training.”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗
“I started working on climate change and nature restoration in New York City in the 1990s. When I came back to live in Scotland, I was heartened, because I had arrived in a country where the people, through the Parliament and the Government of that time, had recognised the science-based evidence on climate change.”
Scottish Parliament23 June 2026Source ↗