Gillian Martin
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“Mark Ruskell: I hear what the cabinet secretary says about her engagement with industry, but it is communities that are facing a deluge of applications for data centres. There are people here today from Fife and across Scotland who are raising their concerns. Answers are needed, cabinet secretary.”
“The Scottish Government has not undertaken a wholly national assessment of the remit that the member specifically outlines on data centres. However, we are currently engaging with industry and partner agencies to better understand the cumulative impacts of data centre developments on the environment.”
“The Scottish Government’s wildfires strategic action plan sets out a partnership approach to preventing, preparing for and responding to wildfires.”
“Although the Scottish Government is not currently undertaking a formal national assessment, we are working with partners to assess the impact of AI data centres and to look at whether current planning conditions are appropriate.”
“David Green: The response from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and local land management to the severe wildfires that were experienced in the Highlands last year was exceptional, and I put on record my thanks to them.”
“Following on from the good work that was done on the wildfires strategy in the previous parliamentary session by Jim Fairlie and by Siobhian Brown, the former Minister for Victims and Community Safety, a great deal of work is being done on prevention.”
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“I am making the point that it is important that we all get behind any money that is pledged by any Government to support the workers at Grangemouth. I do not mean that to be a party political point. This is not the start of the hard work by either Government. Since the new UK Government came in, we have had a much more collaborative relationship than we had with the previous UK Government and we have been working very hard, initially to prevent the closure and ask Petroineos to make a different decision. We have been unstinting in that, and that is still the course of action that I would like to see.”
“I hope that Daniel Johnson can show a similar collaborative approach for Grangemouth by backing the budget—and the money that we have announced—at stage 3 this afternoon. Daniel Johnson: Our position on the budget is clear. This is such a big issue that I do not think that the workers at Grangemouth would thank us for playing politics with it. [Interruption.] It is an important point. Of all the numbers of great importance, the most important is that 400 people have been given redundancy notices. Given that this is the start of the hard work to attract investment in, which is what the funds are expected to do, what steps will the Scottish Government take alongside the United Kingdom Government to attract that investment? Critically, will those sums be available to fund project willow? Gillian Martin: First, I am not playing politics.”
“Last week, the First Minister announced the new £25 million Grangemouth just transition fund, as part of this Government’s nearly £90 million of planned support to Grangemouth. We welcome the recent UK Government announcement that £200 million will also be allocated for Grangemouth from the national wealth fund. We are already engaging with the UK Government on that and we are seeking clarity on the details of the fund to ensure alignment with our interventions, in order to maximise the impact for the workforce, the community, and business development. I am committed to continuing my collaborative relationship with the UK Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero in order to secure a long-term and sustainable future for Grangemouth.”
“Since the bill’s introduction, my officials and I have worked with the UK Government to address issues in the bill that concern the constitutional position of the”
“Thank you, Presiding Officer, for the opportunity to debate the motion to provide legislative consent to the UK Government’s Great British Energy Bill. I look forward to the discussion ahead. After extensive engagement with the UK Government on certain clauses, we now propose that the Scottish Parliament give consent to the bill. As members might be aware, three UK Government amendments were tabled only on Tuesday this week; we are currently considering the amendments and whether a further supplementary legislative consent memorandum is necessary. However, I stress that the Parliament’s decision on legislative consent today will cover only the memorandum that was lodged on 8 August and the supplementary memorandum that was lodged on 28 January.”
“I am doing what I can with our enterprise agencies, my officials and partners in the Cabinet to encourage investment in the site. I am particularly distressed that the UK chancellor announced last week that money for sustainable aviation fuel is going to places that are not Grangemouth, when both the UK Government and the Scottish Government have invested in a study that has shown that the Grangemouth refinery is ripe to be transformed into a sustainable aviation fuel hub. The Deputy Presiding Officer: There are a number of supplementary questions. I hope to take them all.”
“The results will be worse for the environment, because imports have a higher environmental cost. Minister, this has been coming for months. We have warned and warned about the situation. The Scottish Government might be happy to sit round pontificating about a just transition, but, to everyone outside the Parliament, it looks passive and pointless. Will the latest UK Government betrayal finally push the Scottish Government to urgently use its devolved powers creatively? Gillian Martin: I assure Ash Regan that I am not sitting round passively. Since my tenure as Minister for Energy, I have done nothing but engage on this issue with the previous UK Government, with Petroineos and with the current UK Government. I have engaged in good faith with the UK Government on our joint efforts to fund work on the future of the site.”
“I continue to engage very regularly about the closure of the refinery. I met UK Government ministers on that aspect last week. I am disappointed that that loan has been made to Ineos, while the Chancellor of the Exchequer offered nothing in her speech that would avoid an abrupt and unnecessary closure of the refinery or that would support Grangemouth’s transition to play its part in Scotland’s green economy in the future. We need the Labour Government to start doing what it said before the election that it would do and to bring forward real investment to save Grangemouth and the jobs, businesses and livelihoods that depend on it. Ash Regan: This is a sorry situation. Hundreds of highly skilled jobs will be lost, probably for ever, and there will be no refinery capability in Scotland, which is a top 25 oil-producing nation.”
“We will almost triple our capital funding for offshore wind, to £150 million. Such investment comes under year 2 of our five-year commitment to invest up to £500 million to anchor the supply chain in Scotland, which is expected to leverage £1.5 billion of additional private investment in the infrastructure and manufacturing facilities that are critical to the growth of the sector.”
“How much electricity demand is met by renewables, and how will the proposed budget continue to invest in and grow that capacity? Gillian Martin: In 2023, an estimated 64.7 per cent of the electricity that was consumed in Scotland came from renewable sources, but that percentage continues to grow. In quarter 3 of last year, for example, it had risen by more than 8 per cent compared with the same period in 2023. The path to net zero presents enormous economic opportunities through supporting a just transition that creates jobs, promotes private investment and brings communities with us. The recent budget statement announced that, in 2025- 26, we will commit £4.9 billion in capital and resource spend for activities that will have a positive impact on the delivery of our climate change goals.”
“The majority of electricity that is generated in Scotland is from renewable sources, and Scotland plays a crucial role in the United Kingdom’s overall renewable energy landscape. As of 24 September 2024, Scotland hosted 27 per cent of UK renewable electricity capacity. Following work that was undertaken in 2023, the Fraser of Allander Institute estimated that, in 2021, Scotland’s renewable energy sectors and supply chains supported more than £10.1 billion-worth of output, more than 42,000 full-time equivalent jobs and more than £4.7 billion of gross value added across the Scottish economy. Gordon MacDonald: It is vital that we continue to maximise Scotland’s renewables capabilities and take full advantage of our abundant natural resources.”
“Gillian Martin: Nuclear workers in Scotland are highly skilled people who have extremely transferable skills that will be indispensable for the energy sector as a whole in Scotland. However, I think that we can be assured that they will not be moving to Hinkley Point. Originally estimated to cost £18 billion and to be complete in 2017, it is now estimated to cost £46 billion and is expected to be complete in 2031 at the earliest. That is hardly an advertisement for nuclear power. Rural Pharmacies (Investment) 4.”
“We really need a Scottish Government that sees nuclear energy as the crucial clean energy technology that it is—not a Government that denies science—[Interruption.] The Presiding Officer: Let us hear Mr Kerr. Stephen Kerr: I recently listened to young Scots apprentices in the nuclear sector. They were a highly impressive group of young people. They said that they were going to have to move away from Scotland and take their skills to other parts of the United Kingdom if they wanted to pursue their careers. Why is the minister prepared to say goodbye to these highly skilled young people, and how is any of her characteristic negativity on the issue in Scotland’s national interest?”
“The Scottish Government’s position on traditional fission nuclear energy is clear: we do not support the building of any new nuclear power stations in Scotland under current technologies. New nuclear power would take years, if not decades, to become operational and would come at a high cost. Instead, the significant growth in renewables—[Interruption.] The Presiding Officer: When the cabinet secretary is responding, I would be grateful if members listened, as a matter of courtesy. Gillian Martin: Thank you, Presiding Officer. Instead, the significant growth in renewables, storage, hydrogen and carbon capture provides the best pathway to net zero by 2045 and will deliver affordable, resilient and clean energy supplies for Scotland. Stephen Kerr: What a dreadful answer that was.”