To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to improve public consultation on renewable energy projects by energy companies. (S6O-03865)

The Scottish Government is currently developing pre-application guidance for overhead transmission line projects. That will outline the clear and meaningful opportunities that we expect for affected communities to be fully consulted on the route and design of overhead electricity lines.

We have also worked closely with the United Kingdom Government on a consultation that is aimed at modernising the overall Scottish energy consenting scheme, by proposing updates to the reserved legislation that underpins our decision making. That consultation was launched this week and includes proposed legislative changes to mandate pre-application consultation for large-scale projects.

I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests: I was formerly a land agent and advised clients on renewables issues.

During Tess White’s debate, you asked me whether I would support you—

Please speak through the chair.

I am sorry. During that debate, the acting cabinet secretary asked me whether I would support her calls to make consultation and engagement with the public mandatory for transmission operators. That is fine and I agree with that, because communities across the Highlands and Islands and across Scotland are hurting because of the amount of infrastructure work that is going on.

However, it was recently announced that the UK and Scottish Governments have launched a joint consultation to change the planning process for large energy projects and that that could see the removal of councils’ automatic right to a public inquiry, which will hurt the public across Scotland. Will the cabinet secretary guarantee that councils’ right to review such projects will be protected? I do not want to hear that Labour and the Scottish National Party are planning to stitch up more communities.

Tim Eagle will not be surprised to hear that his characterisation of those reforms is not in line with my vision. I want to see enhanced opportunities for communities to be involved at the earliest stages of consultation. We are not waiting for the consultation to go through the UK Government; we are bringing out proposed guidance for community consultation.

I have always believed that community consultation should be mandatory and should come with associated guidance, because I agree with Tim Eagle that communities deserve, and should have, meaningful opportunities to engage with developers well before applications go in.

The ability to make pre-application community engagement mandatory is reserved to the UK Government under the consenting regime of the Electricity Act 1989, so that limits our ability to reform energy policy. Will the cabinet secretary advise members what engagement the Scottish Government has had with the new UK Government on reforms to ensure that that process can swiftly be taken forward while giving communities a voice?

Bill Kidd’s question gives me the opportunity to say that I have had multiple meetings on that point with the new UK Government ministers. I raised it in my first meetings with Michael Shanks and Ed Miliband, because we did not have agreement with the former UK Government on the mandating of community benefits and engagement. I am pleased to say that the consultation is a result of the lobbying that I have done and the conversations that I have had. We launched a joint consultation that will specifically address the issues raised. I greatly appreciate the level of engagement and collaboration that has been shown by the current UK Government as we have collectively worked through the detail of the proposed reforms, which reflect the public discontent with the current system that Bill Kidd has just articulated.