Just transition to net zero requires decisive action by Scottish Government – Satwat Rehman and Dave Reay

Scotland needs to have difficult conversations about how to reduce our emissions sooner rather than later

The climate emergency afflicts the poorest and most marginalised worst of all, exacerbating existing inequalities. We need bold and innovative action to build genuine social and economic resilience in place of a status quo that is deeply unjust, as the number of people in fuel poverty and the cost-of-living crisis shows.

Scotland’s approach to a just transition now faces an early litmus test, with potential redundancies at Grangemouth as well as offshore. Can the right plans be put in place to ensure workers and communities are protected? If so, this would send a crucial signal that Scotland means business and won’t allow the harms of previous unmanaged industrial transitions to be repeated.

A big message from today’s Just Transition Commission report is that difficult conversations about the changes needed to reduce our emissions must happen now, so we start to build a deep, shared understanding of what exactly this involves and how its costs and benefits are being shared fairly. Without this, there’s a real risk that misinformation, fostered by uncertainty and delay, will make it harder to make the necessary changes in terms of how we work, move around, what we eat, how we heat our homes.

The news that the Grangemouth refinery could close by 2025 has underlined the need for a just transition (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Next year we should have a more detailed picture of what the just transition will mean in practice across four core economic sectors: energy, transport, the built environment, and agriculture.

The challenge policymakers have taken on by making the just transition a national mission for Scotland is one of unprecedented scale, complexity and duration. The need for significant short to medium-term investment and detailed planning to secure long-term benefits and savings is also distinctive, with recent politics usually operating against shorter time horizons.

Cross-party support in meeting this challenge, particularly as we may be entering a period of political change, will be invaluable to people whose lives and livelihoods stand to be shaped by the course of our transition to a low-carbon economy.

Scotland has rightly established an international reputation for our approach to a just transition. Now it’s time to justify that recognition with decisive action and delivery. The commission will keep working constructively and collaboratively with the Scottish Government, providing independent scrutiny and advice and helping to build consensus on the toughest challenges.

Satwat Rehman and Dave Reay are co-chairs of the Just Transition Commission