Chamber and committees

Agenda item 2 is a round-table discussion as part of our consideration of air quality in Scotland. I refer members to the papers for this item.

The committee has a role in scrutinising the Scottish Government’s air quality improvement plan, which was prepared in response to a report by Environmental Standards Scotland that looked at nitrogen dioxide levels in Scotland. As part of our formal consideration of the improvement plan, the committee has also agreed to examine wider issues in relation to air quality policy. We launched a targeted call for written views in February and agreed to invite a panel of stakeholders to give evidence on the issue.

I am therefore pleased to welcome Stuart Hay, director of Living Streets Scotland; Craig McLaren, director of the Royal Town Planning Institute Scotland; Gavin Thomson, air pollution campaigner for Friends of the Earth Scotland; and Paul White, director of the Confederation of Passenger Transport Scotland. Joining us remotely is Dr Gary Fuller, UK Research and Innovation clean air champion and senior lecturer in air quality measurement at Imperial College London. Good morning to you all. Thank you for accepting our invitation and thanks to those who provided a mass of written evidence. We are delighted to have the panel here this morning.

We have allocated about an hour for questions, but we will see how we go. Committee members should try to direct questions to the person whom they want to answer them. Not all panel members will get a chance to answer every question but, if you feel that you are being left out, you can indicate to me, and I will try to bring you in to make sure that everyone gets a fair chance to answer all the questions.

The first questions are from the deputy convener, Fiona Hyslop.

That is interesting. I do not think that all buses that operate in rural settings go into LEZs. For example, there is no LEZ proposed for the Highlands, although perhaps we will see one proposed. I am not suggesting that we will, but we may see more non-Euro 6 engines, or perhaps not.

Good morning, and welcome to the 12th meeting in 2023 of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee. The first item on the agenda is consideration of whether to take item 3 in private. Item 3 is consideration of the evidence that we will hear today on air quality in Scotland. Do members agree to take that item in private?

Members indicated agreement.

I see all sorts of problems, including a timber lorry travelling down a rural road where the safe route is down the edge of that road. I am sure that there are solutions, however.

Were you, indeed? I had you down for the first question. That is fine.

Jackie, would you like to head off with the first question?

Okay. I remembered conversations during the passage of the Transport (Scotland) Bill about having to consider roads that linked across the United Kingdom so that there was a standard policy on all of them.

Thank you.

Brilliant. Thank you very much.

Just before we leave this subject, I have one more question. You will have heard the question that was put to the previous panel. How will the council use the money that is raised from the penalty—or the charge, whichever way you view it, if those are different things? How will it take into account those who commute into cities, who will probably be the people most affected? Could I have brief answers?

Fiona, I think that you have one brief follow-up question.