Michael Matheson
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“I am grateful to the cabinet secretary for her statement. I very much agree with her comments about securing the economic value of decarbonisation and achieving net zero. The cabinet secretary will recognise that one of the key areas in which we need to see further decarbonisation is the transport sector, including in the bus sector.”
“Gillian Martin: I have the Cabinet Secretary for Transport sitting next to me, who has just told me that that will be announced very soon. As Michael Matheson knows, we are investing a further £45 million to support the adoption of zero-emission buses through the third phase of”
“In our consideration of the bill, we should be particularly mindful of the impact that it could have on some of the most vulnerable members of our society, who lack agency in their decision making.”
“I feel duty bound to point out that the Assisted Dying Bill at Holyrood is not workable in its approach to detecting coercion.” Those are strong words—not from a person who opposes the law in principle, but from someone who is concerned about what we might call the constituency of very vulnerable people in our country.”
“Domestic abuse experts, such as Dr Anni Donaldson, have warned us that the bill “risks offering a new, potentially lethal weapon to abusive men whose partners have been diagnosed with life- threatening or terminal illnesses.” The Scottish Government’s evidence shows that, as we continue to have a hidden population of victims of abuse and…”
“As I rise to make my last contribution to a debate in this Parliament after some 27 years, I cannot think of a more consequential debate taking place during my time here. I offer my congratulations and thanks to Liam McArthur and to colleagues across the chamber for what has been a very dignified and considered debate to this point.”
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Every one of 165 lines we hold for Michael Matheson, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 4 of 4.
“Rachael Hamilton: Part of the solution to the megapylons that are going through areas such as the Borders and that are greatly unpopular with lots of communities would be to look at the national planning framework 4 to give communities a greater say. Does the member agree with doing that? Michael Matheson: We should always try to make sure that we use the system as best we can. However, using terms such as “megapylons” does not help the reality of what we are trying to deal with, which is to make sure that we have the right grid infrastructure in place. For example, in my constituency, new pylon networks are being introduced, and I recently met with SP Energy Networks to discuss that.”
“The decisions that were made by the previous Conservative Government to increase our dependency on renewables— offshore renewables in particular—have resulted in a need to significantly increase the capacity in our grid infrastructure. Although we all want renewables to be successful and for them to be a growing part of our economy, the reality is that grid investment needs to take place in order to achieve that. I recognise the concerns and issues that communities have about some of that investment and those projects as they move forward. It is important that we ensure that our distribution network operators are held to account and pressed to ensure that they minimise the potential impact that they will have on communities where that can reasonably be done.”
“That just transition is dependent on us being able to deliver not just the projects that are renewable, but the technology that goes alongside them—turbines, nacelles, blades and towers—all of which go into the mix and which we need to start manufacturing in Scotland if we are to deliver a just transition. In order for those projects to become a reality and get to the point when a financial investment decision can be made, they require assurance around being able to connect to the national grid. Although there has been investment in renewable projects over the past decade-plus, there has not been the level of investment that has been needed in our grid infrastructure to meet the ever-increasing demand.”
“During the course of the debate so far, there have been points of division about whether nuclear should be part of our future energy mix, but there are clearly points of agreement, in particular around the value of renewables to our economy and the desire to ensure that we maximise that economic benefit for Scotland as a whole. Just last week, the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit published a report that highlighted the value of the renewable energy sector to Scotland, which is increasing year on year. The renewable energy sector is critical to us in supporting the delivery of a just transition as we decarbonise our energy system.”
“To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has made of the recent study by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit regarding the contribution of the net zero sector to the United Kingdom and Scotland’s economy. (S6F-03857)”
“On a point of order, Presiding Officer. My app would not connect; I would have voted yes. The Presiding Officer: Thank you, Mr Matheson. We will ensure that that is recorded.”
“The Government remains open to doing that in order to avoid the economic impact that we fear will come as a consequence of the closure announcement.”
“The First Minister: I am very open to Mr Matheson’s proposal. My statement recognises the fact that we are in a different place as a consequence of the redundancy notices being issued. We must move with greater urgency. I assure Mr Matheson that our officials are working on that mandate from my office. We have put additional resources in place, which will be available from the start of the financial year, to address Mr Matheson’s point about the need for more urgent intervention. If more acceleration of investment is required, we will look at providing that within our financial arrangements, although Mr Matheson will be familiar with the fact that that would involve rescheduling commitments in our existing budget plans.”
“In his statement, the First Minister made reference to the Falkirk and Grangemouth growth deal, which he will know is critical to the repositioning of the wider economy in the area in the years ahead. However, the 10-year timeframe does not reflect the urgency of the situation that we now face and the need for immediate action to support jobs and industries in the area. I have previously asked whether we could progress some of the early projects at a quicker pace in order to support their development. To date, limited progress has been made. Will the First Minister instruct officials in the Scottish Government to engage with UK Government officials and Falkirk Council to identify the projects that could be moved forward at a quicker pace so that we can make progress as quickly as possible?”
“The grid is absolutely key to supporting us in achieving the economic investment that we need to deliver a just transition. I recognise and hear the challenges that communities have around some of the infrastructure. It is important that we have a consenting mechanism that listens to the concerns and issues that communities raise, and that we have distribution network operators that work alongside communities. When those operators provide support to communities, that must be based on the principles of community wealth building. It will not be easy, but the reality is that we need to get the balance right between economic investment and the needs of our communities, and the proposed reforms will achieve that. 16:34”
“We need to recognise that the key to unlocking some of the economic opportunities from decarbonising our energy system is sufficient grid capacity. Members often speak to the need to deliver a just transition in the years ahead. However, simply delivering more offshore and onshore wind power and hydro power or hydrogen production facilities will not itself deliver a just transition. The key to delivering a just transition is the manufacturing capacity that goes alongside those developments. Projects can achieve financial closure only if they have access to the grid, and it is only when we have a steady beat of projects in place that we can attract the economic investment in manufacturing that we need to deliver the just transition.”
“In doing so, it triggered the need not only to upgrade the existing grid infrastructure but to put in place significant new grid infrastructure. As a result, the grid operator—the energy system operator—set in course a pathway of work to achieve the target that the previous UK Government had set. That was then reinforced by the electricity networks commissioner, who highlighted the need to put in place significant new grid infrastructure to achieve the previous Government’s target. It is important to keep in mind that the issue has not been created by the new Labour UK Government or the SNP Government in Scotland. We have been on the pathway for many years, and significant work has been undertaken to arrive at this point.”
“I am sure that many members recognise that major infrastructure change of any nature will inevitably bring with it both opportunities and challenges. The decarbonisation of our energy network, and the strategic energy system that will be needed to support it through infrastructure at scale, will create some of those opportunities and challenges. Before I touch on some of them, I note that it would be wrong to present the issues in today’s debate, including consenting reform, as things that have happened out of the blue. The path that has led us to this point has been many years in the making. Back in 2022, the previous UK Government increased its target for offshore wind production to 50GW by 2030.”
“Richard Lochhead: I thank Michael Matheson for giving a real-life illustration of the impact that UK Government policies are having on businesses in Scotland, and I give him an assurance that we will continue to make the strongest possible representations to the UK Government. I am sorry to hear about the example in Mr Matheson’s constituency, which is yet another illustration of the short-sightedness of the UK Government’s policy and some of the measures in its budget. Enterprise Agencies (Assessment of Performance) 2.”
“The minister will be aware of the real-life implications that the increase in national insurance contributions has for employers. Alexander Dennis, which is based in my constituency, went through a redundancy programme towards the end of last year. In December, it announced a further redundancy programme, with the primary reason for a second batch of redundancies being the employer national insurance contributions increase. The issue is starting to have a real-life impact on people’s jobs. Will the minister ensure that the Scottish Government and its agencies will continue to work with critical employers such as Alexander Dennis to support them in this challenging economic environment?”