Collaboration will be key to accelerating the transition to net zero - Jason Morris

COP26 was a turning point in Scotland’s climate change conversation. For the first time the role of the private sector was central to the discussion, with a clear call for businesses to do their bit to note-0 accelerate the net zero transition.

Almost 18 months on, the second iteration of PwC UK’s Green Jobs Barometer highlights Scotland as the UK’s strongest performing region on proportionate green job creation, with the number of roles doubling last year from 1.7 per cent to 3.3 per cent of all job adverts.

While demand for green jobs is driven by the North East’s energy sector, one third of all green jobs being created are in professional and scientific roles more prevalent in London, leaving Scotland behind several regions in the total number of green jobs being created.

It’s vital to securing a fair transition that the benefits of green growth be shared across the UK - and that communities and companies dependent on high emission jobs aren’t left behind - so how do we capitalise on the green growth driven by the energy sector to benefit the net zero transition for all of Scotland’s economy, and its regions?

Jason Morris is Regional Market Leader for Scotland at PwC UK.

This question was central to a recent PwC Scotland roundtable. Business leaders and government representatives joined us to discuss the changes we can make to drive investment in the infrastructure, finance, business ecosystems and skills needed to continue on our path to becoming a leading global centre for green growth and innovation. As expected, common challenges were identified.

Most prevalent is that, like much of the UK, Scotland faces a significant green skills gap in its energy sector which cannot be met from the existing workforce and risks derailing our net zero ambitions if not addressed soon.

This is across the board, from shortages of electricians and fabricators, to a lack of STEM skills like computer science, and gaps in critical sectors like financial services.

Whilst investment and access to funding has improved, there remains the matter of availability of scale-up capital and finance from within Scotland and the UK. As well as the need to table more ground-breaking projects driving net zero ambitions and avoiding pockets of ‘climate poverty’, businesses making an impact must take steps towards heightening awareness of Scotland as an attractive investment prospect.

It’s vital that investment be fairly distributed to ensure equity across businesses and regions since around 30-35 per cent of Scottish businesses and consumers cannot afford to make the changes required to facilitate energy transition. SMEs face increasing economic challenges, and lack incentives to build net zero into business plans – and so view any related spend as cost rather than investment – so larger businesses have a role to play, bringing SMEs along on their journeys.

Collaboration will be key to cementing Scotland’s position at the forefront of fair transition – perhaps even ‘radical collaboration’. With common climate neutrality goals across business and government, why not harness our collective power to facilitate the transition?

This requires system-level policy and regulatory changes to open up investment opportunities, and to enable academia, government, and private businesses to better collaborate in their efforts to accelerate the transition to net zero. PwC will continue its work to identify the opportunities and challenges for Scotland, and how we ensure the economic benefits of this change are enjoyed across society.

Jason Morris is Regional Market Leader for Scotland at PwC UK. Find out more at www.pwc.com