Seòmar agus comataidhean

I am grateful to Tess White for taking the intervention. Can she tell members why her party opposed an equal right of appeal that would have given communities the same rights as developers?

Will the member take an intervention?

Does the minister recognise that referring to communities as the “third party” in decision making is really at the root of the problem? The campaign for equal rights of appeal is about treating communities as equal partners. Does the minister recognise why I say that?

It is important that we have robust environmental impact assessments. Tess White might know that, in a previous life, I was a chartered town planner, so I will be happy to have a longer discussion with her on that aspect. I am glad that she has intervened on me, because it allows me to underline the point that I made in my intervention on her earlier, about the imbalance in our planning system. We do not have a level playing field, which is why my question to her on equalising the right of appeal goes to the heart of the debate. My colleague Sarah Boyack, who is nodding from the Labour front bench, is a fellow former town planner—perhaps we are responsible for the current shortfall in practising planners in this country. These are critical debates, and it is absolutely up to the Government to get this issue right. If it will not lead on that, in the next parliamentary session we will need a Government that will do so.

Deputy Presiding Officer, I do not know whether I am getting time back or not, so I will have to race through the rest of my contribution.

It is great that two of the Parliament’s committees are focusing on the issue. Last week, at the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee, I was able to put questions to Dr Richard Dixon from Environmental Standards Scotland. I was concerned to hear Dr Dixon, whom I am sure the Government respects, say that

“the Government produced a really shoddy secondary paper that went into environmental courts and why it does not want one, but it was still not very convincing.”

He said that creating an environmental court is one way that the Government could accelerate towards Aarhus compliance but that the Government seemed

“desperate not to do that.”

To me, that is inexplicable. He said that

“The original consultation on the governance review hardly mentioned an environmental court and dismissed the idea without any evidence.”—[Official Report, Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee, 25 March 2025; c 47.]

I would love to hear the reason for that.

This issue matters to my local community. We have had to fight against speculative applications for incinerators, so I pay tribute to the Dovesdale action group and to my constituents in Whitehill.

I also thank members who have supported my call for an ecocide law in Scotland, because we need system change. It is not about picking out individual locations and types of application.

We need to make sure that our systems work for people and the planet, and Aarhus compliance should be at the heart of that. Reputationally, this is damaging to the Government, but it is also damaging to Scotland, and we need urgency from the Government. The Government will get backing from the chamber, but it needs to come up with something that is credible.

It was good to hear the First Minister speaking today about the importance of the rule of law. Does the minister agree that access to justice is the ultimate guarantee of the rule of law and that, rather than just progress on the Aarhus convention, we need full compliance?

We are here because Scotland is clearly in breach of the Aarhus convention, which is denying Scots access to environmental justice.

I believe that this is a vital debate. Scotland is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and we are simply not doing enough to tackle climate breakdown. The pollution of our air, land and water is not a rural or an urban problem—it is an everywhere problem. I therefore agree with Michael Matheson’s point that we should not try to split our communities. Decisions about the use of land and how we treat the environment are taken in systems that benefit the wealthy and the powerful—often to the detriment of the people and communities who have the fewest resources.

The Scottish Government’s persistent failure to comply with the Aarhus convention is not simply embarrassing; it is endangering the human rights of my constituents and all the people of Scotland. I pay tribute to the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, Planning Democracy, Friends of the Earth Scotland, RSPB Scotland and everyone else who is fighting for environmental justice and the right to a healthy environment.

Christina McKelvie was passionate, principled and patriotic. We had our political differences but, over many years, I experienced her warmth, which so many others have mentioned, and her wisdom.

As a quarter of Christina’s team, “the Holyboobs”, with Gillian Mackay and Christine Jardine, I will cherish our unforgettable moonwalk around Edinburgh. She united us to raise funds and awareness of breast cancer—an illness that does not care about party politics.

Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Labour Party paid tribute to Christina on Friday night, and I extend our sincere condolences and love to Keith, Lewis and Jack; to her grandchildren; to all her family and friends, especially her SNP family; and to everyone who loved Christina.

Larkhall and District Volunteer Group will remember her as compassionate. Friends of Stonehouse Park have honoured a “positive personality”. Hamilton District Foodbank said:

“It has been a privilege to have had Christina in our lives.”

I will remember the woman who believed in human rights, fought for equality and championed social justice.

Christina loved a good quote, so I will conclude with words that she spoke in the Scottish Parliament that she loved. She said:

“Be bold, be courageous and be brave, because the people of this land—our Scotland—demand and deserve nothing less.”—[Official Report, 25 May 2016; c 61.]

[Applause.]

I welcome the minister’s update. The issue of clarifying the definition of “sustainable and regenerative agriculture” has come up during scrutiny of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill. What is the Government doing to ensure that there is a clear and consistent definition and that the aims that underpin the Government’s vision, strategy and legislation are clearly understood?

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to progress its ambition for Scotland to be a world leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture practice. (S6O-04518)

Christina McKelvie was passionate, principled and patriotic. We had our political differences but, over many years, I experienced her warmth, which so many others have mentioned, and her wisdom.

As a quarter of Christina’s team, “the Holyboobs”, with Gillian Mackay and Christine Jardine, I will cherish our unforgettable moonwalk around Edinburgh. She united us to raise funds and awareness of breast cancer—an illness that does not care about party politics.

Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Labour Party paid tribute to Christina on Friday night, and I extend our sincere condolences and love to Keith, Lewis and Jack; to her grandchildren; to all her family and friends, especially her SNP family; and to everyone who loved Christina.

Larkhall and District Volunteer Group will remember her as compassionate. Friends of Stonehouse Park have honoured a “positive personality”. Hamilton District Foodbank said:

“It has been a privilege to have had Christina in our lives.”

I will remember the woman who believed in human rights, fought for equality and championed social justice.

Christina loved a good quote, so I will conclude with words that she spoke in the Scottish Parliament that she loved. She said:

“Be bold, be courageous and be brave, because the people of this land—our Scotland—demand and deserve nothing less.”—[Official Report, 25 May 2016; c 61.]

[Applause.]