To ask the Scottish Government what impact its recently announced hub for offshore wind will have on the renewables sector in north-east Scotland. (S6O-04138)

The offshore wind hub in north-east Scotland will provide an additional route for industry to engage meaningfully with the Scottish Government. It will build on what we already have in place with our consenting teams, as we fully unlock sector opportunities and jointly deliver on Scotland’s offshore wind potential.

That complements our announcement of our capital funding in offshore wind being almost tripled to £150 million next year. It is part of our strategic investment of up to £500 million over five years, which is expected to unlock £1.5 billion in private investment and support thousands of new jobs.

Scotland’s offshore energy industry has been a success story for more than 50 years, and repurposing the North Sea as a global multi-agency basin will ensure that the sector can power the country for decades to come. Recently, Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce highlighted the benefits of locating Scottish Government agencies in the north-east in order to accelerate planning and consenting processes for offshore wind and to remove grid bottlenecks. With that in mind, can the cabinet secretary provide further detail on how the proposed Scottish Government hub will work with stakeholders to realise Scotland’s energy potential?

The offshore wind hub in Aberdeen will provide an opportunity for the Scottish Government and other parties across Scotland to work with the offshore wind industry. The development of the hub is in its initial stages, and my officials will engage further with industry, as well as with other stakeholders, to understand what they would find helpful to support the offshore wind sector, which, as Audrey Nicoll has described, plays a critical role in Scotland’s journey to net zero and a just transition.

I welcome any pounds spent in the north-east, because the Scottish National Party Government has treated the north-east like a cash cow for far too long—[ Interruption .]

Let us hear Mr Lumsden.

What funding will be made to the Net Zero Technology Centre after the city region deal funding from the United Kingdom Government and the Scottish Government comes to an end in 2026? I am sure that the cabinet secretary would agree that that organisation is vital for growing the renewables sector in the north-east.

As we have done in the past, we are committed to funding the Net Zero Technology Centre, because it does absolutely excellent work.

As for the use of the words “cash cow”, I would just reflect on the fact that most of the funds from offshore oil and gas have, for the past 50 years, gone down to the Westminster Treasury, and that Scotland, and indeed Aberdeen and the north-east, have seen very little in return.

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers has highlighted that more than 200,000 jobs have already been lost across the offshore oil and gas industry in the past decade. I am sure that the cabinet secretary will agree that we need offshore workers in the north-east for our green energy transition—we need their experience, knowledge and skills. Does she agree that we cannot expect those workers to pay the cost of the transition? If so, can she tell those workers how the new hub will remove the cost to them of retraining and skills passporting to the green transition?

Mercedes Villalba might have understood the purpose of the hub slightly incorrectly, because it is not going to be a training hub as such. We have been working on industry-led skills passports, which are starting to come to fruition. I suggest that Mercedes Villalba catch up with Offshore Energies UK and Renewable Energy UK, which are leading on that vital work.