Question reference: S5W-34562
- Asked by: Claudia Beamish, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 13 January 2021
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Current status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 1 February 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it is on track to deliver a publicly-owned energy company by the end of the current parliamentary session and, if not, by what date this will be delivered.
Answer
We had expected to engage with local authorities to consider the independent outline business case and agree next steps. Work on the public energy company has been mostly paused as we and potential local authority partners continue to focus resource on responding to the pandemic. As a result we are not in a position to deliver the energy company by the end of the current parliamentary session. We have continued to update councils, COSLA and SOLACE, and we are considering how we can best deliver the energy company ambition in light of the climate change emergency and need to deliver a just transition to net zero.