In response to the Scottish Government’s announcement it will scrap its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by 2030

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Valentina Stackl, press@priceofoil.org

In response to the Scottish Government’s announcement it will scrap its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by 2030, Rosemary Harris, Oil Change International Senior Campaigner for North Sea phase out, said:

“At a time when governments must ramp up their climate efforts, the Scottish Government’s backtracking is a catastrophic betrayal. Once a UK leader on climate policy, Scotland is turning its back on scientific evidence and international obligations, to line the pockets of oil and gas executives and save face after missing eight of the last 12 annual emissions targets.

“Since setting these targets in 2019, the Scottish Government has put no plan in place for actually achieving them – and now want to rip up the marking sheet to avoid scrutiny. This is first and foremost a political failure, one that lets down communities in Scotland and on the frontline of climate breakdown across the globe.

“Now is the time for the Scottish Government to get serious, apologise for their failures so far, and set ambitious plans to get back on track.”

Note to Editor:
In March, Oil Change International released a report, Troubled Waters, that highlighted Scotland’s outsized progress towards Just Transition targets that put it ahead of the UK as a whole. However, this move puts that position in jeopardy. Rather than throwing its hands up in defeat, the government should  redouble efforts in line with the 2019 Climate Change Act, focussing on warm homes, public transport provision and providing workers with the skills they need for the transition.

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