Chamber and committees

I absolutely understand that, but that help comes at a cost. I am trying to identify whether the help is attached to carbon credits.

I will bring in Mark Ruskell, and then I might follow that up a little more.

Can I finish on my carbon credits question, then come back to you on marine protected areas?

Welcome back. Our next item is an evidence session on Scotland’s deposit return scheme. I refer members to the papers for this item.

At the committee’s last meeting on 7 March, we agreed to take evidence from the Scottish Government on the DRS, and to hear from Circularity Scotland, the scheme administrator, at a meeting in the near future. The purpose of these sessions is to ascertain key information about the scheme’s readiness for launch on 16 August this year.

I am pleased to welcome back Lorna Slater, Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity. I also welcome Kevin Quinlan, director, environment and forestry, Scottish Government; and Euan Page, head of UK frameworks, Scottish Government.

Minister, before we begin, I believe that you would like to make a brief opening statement.

Thank you very much, minister.

I will now do a pivot—which politicians are sometimes quite capable of doing. I will pause that agenda item to return to agenda item 1. Mercedes Villalba, this is the first time that you have attended the committee, so I ask whether there are any declarations that you wish to make before you ask questions at the committee.

Thank you. I will now pivot back again to the subject at hand. Thank you again, minister, for your opening statement. The first questions are from Jackie Dunbar.

Mercedes, you are up next. Fiona, if you want to come in on the back of this question, we will see if we have time.

Absolutely.

I was wondering when the question was coming.

Good morning and welcome to the ninth meeting of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee in 2023. Today we have received apologies from Monica Lennon and Ash Regan. I welcome Collette Stevenson. Mercedes Villalba will also attend later, as a substitute. When she joins us I will have to pause to ask her whether she wants to declare interests before she asks any questions. Technically, that is the first item on the agenda, but it will come at the correct moment.

Therefore, we will move to agenda item 2, which is to make a decision on whether to take items 6, 7 and 8 in private. Items 6 and 7 are consideration of the evidence that we will hear today on the outcome of the 15th United Nations biodiversity conference of the parties—COP15—and Scotland’s deposit return scheme. Item 8 is consideration of a draft report on the United Kingdom Energy Bill. Do members agree to take those items in private?

Members indicated agreement.