Seòmar agus comataidhean

Do you have any examples of statutory consultees so that we understand who that might be?

Yes, that would be useful.

Craig McLaren, Ailsa Macfarlane and Catriona Hill, do you have any thoughts in relation to NPF4 policies on climate change and biodiversity? Are those having more impact?

Thanks for that. Catriona, do you have anything to add?

I wonder whether the climate action hubs and networks, which are beginning to grow, could be places where we can start to see some of that action on the ground. After all, they seem to be well placed; Moray Climate Action Network and the North East Scotland Climate Action Network, for example, are in place to do this sort of thing, and perhaps the next big step is for some of those networks to start those community discussions and get people thinking about 20-minute neighbourhoods and what they mean—or, for more rural areas, the sustainable living approach that we are aware of.

I call Mark Griffin, who joins us online with some questions that relate to a recent case. The status of that case has, as we now know, changed, so he is able to ask them.

Okay. Does anybody else have anything to add on that? No. Okay. It is such fresh material there. That is the impression I have, too, Craig, but we might both be wrong. I will bring in Miles Briggs with a number of questions.

Okay. You are saying that there is precedent and something that we can point to in terms of the experience with archaeology?

Pam Gosal, do you want to pick up your next question?

Thanks for that. Having heard you talk about that, I note that we have a big push on renewable energy, certainly in the Highlands, which is my region. I come across companies that will need to house hundreds of workers on site that will be temporary housing. Have you come across that? I wonder how planners will handle the situation in which we have to build a village that lasts for a number of years. I know that the idea is to take such villages down and move the houses elsewhere. Catriona, have you come across that?

That is a slightly different situation because that is in a town and there is a need for workers’ accommodation—and not “accommodation”, but homes. I referred to a temporary situation where there will be—I do not know the number—many houses for a limited number of years, which is really more about accommodation. I guess that that is something that we will come across. Hopefully NPF4 will not hinder that but will support it.

Stephanie Callaghan is joining us online and has a number of questions.

I have a couple of supplementary questions on that. Pam Gosal has indicated that she wants to come in before Stephanie Callaghan asks her next question.

We have been talking about the fact that it takes time for applications to move through the process. The requirement for reasonable engagement has been raised with me. Concern has been expressed that, since we got used to working from home during Covid, quite a lot of planners now work from home.

One issue is this: how are inexperienced planners mentored and how do they gain understanding of how to move through the processes? Also, things are slowing down on the developer/architect applicant side, so could there be a requirement to connect a planner from a department with a plan to follow things up and be in touch with its progress? Those are two questions, or suggestions.

Craig McLaren talked about this already, in a way. I understand that NPF4 is a significant mindset change. Is there an education programme to help planners to embrace significant changes, so that rather than just bringing in ecologists, we give planners some fundamental training and the skill sets to allow them to look at things in different ways?