Alongside our impact partner Sustainable Scotland Network, JUST has submitted evidence to The Scottish Government’s Climate Change Plan 2026-2040 to help improve and expand its commitment to a just transition.
Our research and recommendations show how JUST’s place-based work across the North of England has much wider applicability to inform climate policy across the UK.
We welcome that the Scottish Government’s climate action plan looks to adopt a just transition approach and framework. Nevertheless, our analysis has identified four areas of the plan that are either missing or would benefit from greater detail:
- How the plan will ensure that a just transition does not create new inequalities or intensify existing injustices.
- How policy can be designed to enable flexibility for underrepresented and marginalised groups to participate.
- How fairness and justice can be used to frame the transition so that political backlash is less likely.
- A clear strategy for how the plan will enable collaboration with other actors necessary to make the delivery of the climate action plan a success.
Strengthening these key dimensions will take Scotland’s Climate Change Plan from simply reaching net zero to delivering a genuinely just transition. We look forward to hearing the outcome of the consultation and seeing the revised plan in the coming months.