First Minister’s Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 9 October 2025.
Alex Cole-Hamilton
Liberal Democrat
I entirely associate myself with the First Minister’s remarks about progress towards peace in the Middle East.
I also take a moment to offer the sincere thanks of the Scottish Liberal Democrats for the life and work of Sir Menzies Campbell, who was lost to us last week. Ming was a titan of British politics who commanded respect in the Parliament in which he served and in homes across this country. He was a mentor and friend to many in my party and we miss him. I offer condolences to his family at this difficult time. [ Applause .]
When companies generate renewable energy, they are expected to give money back to the local community, but the amount of cash that we are talking about is pitiful, because the rules have not changed in more than a decade. All the while, people are still shivering in the Shadow of turbines, unable to heat their homes. Will the Scottish Government listen to the Liberal Democrats, to Highland Council and to Shetland Islands Council and will it change those rules to cut energy Bills for local people?
John Swinney
Scottish National Party
First, I thank Mr Cole-Hamilton for his words, as I thanked Mr Sarwar for his, on the situation in Gaza. I also associate myself with his remarks about Menzies Campbell, Lord Campbell of Pittenweem. I was warmly and fondly welcomed into the House of Commons by Ming Campbell in 1997 and I enjoyed far too many uproariously funny conversations with Ming and his late wife, Elspeth, who were always wonderful company. I convey to the Liberal Democrats, as I have conveyed privately, my appreciation and sympathy as they wrestle with the loss of a giant of the Liberal Democrat movement.
On the substantive question on renewable energy, I have a lot of sympathy with Mr Cole-Hamilton’s point. The issue of community benefits arising out of wind farm developments is regulated by the United Kingdom Government, and we have been pressing for some time to mandate community benefits from mature onshore renewables technologies and to create greater benefit for communities, particularly in relation to the reduction of fuel Bills. I am sympathetic to his point, but it is an issue that the Government has pressed the UK Government on, and we will continue to do so.
Alex Cole-Hamilton
Liberal Democrat
The First Minister cannot dodge this entirely. Some of it lies with his Government, too. Yesterday, I was in north Edinburgh with Ed Davey and Councillor Sanne Dijkstra-Downie and we met Edinburgh College apprentices who are being trained for good green jobs installing home insulation, solar panels and heat pumps. Those technologies are ready to go and they are at the heart of Liberal Democrats’ realistic plan to halve household energy Bills by 2035.
John Swinney’s own independent advisers now say that his Government is extremely unlikely to meet its Fuel Poverty target. They found people catching hypothermia in their own homes, missing meals to top up the meter and burning their own floorboards as fuel. The Scottish Government’s consultation on the amount that energy companies give back closed six months ago, but nothing has changed. Under Liberal Democrat proposals, there are millions of pounds out there that could warm homes across Scotland. When will the First Minister change those rules?
John Swinney
Scottish National Party
The existing arrangements, which are specified by the United Kingdom Government, are non-mandatory. As a consequence, there is a limit. It is one of the examples of the constitutional point that I make. I am very sympathetic to the member’s point, but I cannot exercise powers that I am not legally entitled to exercise. That is one of the limitations of the constitutional arrangements.
I am absolutely with Mr Cole-Hamilton in wanting to use the energy wealth of Scotland, which is absolutely beyond dispute—we all agree about that—and I am absolutely with him on the desire to eradicate Fuel Poverty.
In the summer, I spent some time on the island of Yell in Shetland, where I saw an excellent example of a community wind farm that is creating real benefit in the locality and is owned by the community. Such models can be delivered where there is community ownership, and the Scottish Government enabled that development to be undertaken on Yell. I then went to the main island in Shetland and saw a colossal wind farm—the Viking Energy project—that is not delivering the right level of benefit to the community, nor is it eradicating fuel poverty. People in Shetland are living cheek by jowl with one of the largest wind farms in Europe while paying the highest fuel Bills and living in fuel poverty.
The powers to arrest that do not rest in this Parliament. They rest with the UK Government. I am determined—and I am very keen to work with Mr Cole-Hamilton—to get those powers here so that we can do something about it for the people of Shetland and the people of west Edinburgh.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
A proposal for new legislation that is debated by Parliament.
The shadow cabinet is the name given to the group of senior members from the chief opposition party who would form the cabinet if they were to come to power after a General Election. Each member of the shadow cabinet is allocated responsibility for `shadowing' the work of one of the members of the real cabinet.
The Party Leader assigns specific portfolios according to the ability, seniority and popularity of the shadow cabinet's members.
The House of Commons is one of the houses of parliament. Here, elected MPs (elected by the "commons", i.e. the people) debate. In modern times, nearly all power resides in this house. In the commons are 650 MPs, as well as a speaker and three deputy speakers.
A household is said to be in fuel poverty when its members cannot afford to keep adequately warm at reasonable cost, given their income.
