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We welcome the fact that we are taking a place-based approach to Grangemouth. Others might want to touch on the prospects for the transition of the site itself and whether the industrial processes can move into the hydrogen sector and the Acorn project, for example. However, all things being well—with the industrial site being able to transition—it could effectively do that in parallel with, or in a separate universe from, the community itself.

Focusing on the community of Grangemouth, we know from previous consultations that one of its key concerns is transport. If everything is successful, we will be expanding the number of jobs at Grangemouth, but that will bring in more cars because public transport in the area is not what it should be. There is no rail link, although there was one in the past. There is quite a serious point to consider about what success looks like and how transport will be critical.

Housing will also be critical. We have been told that, if local businesses that are not on the industrial site but are in Grangemouth are to benefit and grow, they will need more footfall, which means making sure that people live in the area. There is also the challenge of having the quality of housing to attract people and make them want to live there and spend what, we hope, will be their good wages.

To what extent will the just transition plan address those issues? They are quite independent of the transition of the industrial site, but we already know that they are challenges from the many consultations about Grangemouth that have been carried out.

Good morning. Thank you for joining us. Who is responsible for the just transition plan for energy and who is responsible for the one for agriculture? Is it the respective cabinet secretaries with oversight of those portfolios? How will that work?

Clearly, the green hydrogen potential for Scotland is enormous, but we will need a bridge to get there, and the Acorn project is key in that. Last spring, the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee produced a cross-party report highlighting the importance of that. We must bear it in mind that we will not necessarily be able to see that shift to sustainable aviation fuel—or, indeed, the big green hydrogen market that we anticipate that Scotland could realise—for some time. However, it will have an impact on the just transition, particularly for Grangemouth.

I assume that the just transition plan that you produce will not be set in stone, because the plan will be affected every time that there is a milestone or an intervention of what, we hope, will be positive decisions. When you publish it next year, will you make it clear how you will maintain it on an iterative basis, so that it is not only current but forward looking and visionary?

This inquiry is part of the preparation, and we want to input into your plan. We do not expect you to be definitive about what will or will not be in it, but we are discussing what we have heard. Colin Smyth talked about the need for a route map and about how there perhaps should be tangible points along the way to 2045 and the realisation of the final vision.

One of the transport issues that we have heard about is congestion around the site because of the many vehicles that transport the high levels of fuel that are, as you have said, key to the central belt of Scotland. However, there seems to be a lack of ownership, with no one responsible for resolving that issue, and it would be an easy win.

Another win would be to look at the north-south connections from the M8 to Grangemouth. If we are talking about STPR2, I note that the Avon gorge road was the only non-trunk road to be mentioned, and it would stop big lorries, tankers and so on having to do 40-mile round trips. It is probably the only green road in Scotland.

If we are thinking about meaningful wins along the way, whether they relate to transport, housing, flooding measures or whatever, those are the things that we have heard about. I am not saying that they have to be the priorities—although I would argue that they should be, given my constituency interest in the Avon gorge road, in particular—but when you produce your plans, will you look at things that make wider sense and that result in tangible wins not just for the industrial site but for the community around it? Do you expect to consider such issues over the next few months?

Thank you.

Apologies for straying on to a colleague’s area of questioning, but I was more interested in the five-year review and how that sits with a continuous improvement agenda, which everybody seems to recognise we need to have. Does that relate to your point about there being certain things that we would need to assess more regularly than every five years? That is more of a policy agenda? We know that we need standards. However, we do not want compliance with standards to get in the way of what seems to be a wider continuous improvement agenda that can be monitored and assessed more regularly. Is that your view?

To put the issue in context, I note that, if we use that timescale, a child who starts primary 1 aged five will almost have left primary school by the time of the review. I am not saying anything about a particular school but, conceptually, in relation to improvements, five years is quite a long time in the life of a child.

Does the Scottish Government have any views on the WHO’s air quality guidelines, as revised in 2021, and whether they should be implemented in Scotland?

Cabinet secretary, what are your expectations with regard to LEZs? We have heard that there will be different plans in different cities to address the local situation. We have also heard about the fact that the LEZs will have to reflect, for example, the bus fleet in a particular area. Will you share your views on that, given that we are looking at air quality more widely as part of our discussions?

Do you have a view on the Scottish Government’s support for local authorities that have been failing to meet their objectives under local air quality management systems? Is there any evidence of improvement in the support that is being provided?