Fairer greener future is what is needed

The Scottish Government must move quickly to invest in green jobs such as projects upgrading homes to make them warmer and more efficient.

The First Minister’s Advisory Group on Economic Recovery warned of a “potential tsunami” of job losses and recommended a job guarantee for young people in Scotland.

The Scottish Greens secured an additional £25m energy efficiency investment earlier this year, and have called for the programme to be upscaled to provide thousands of vital construction jobs.

I raised the issue at First Minister’s Questions. Half of working Scots are concerned about losing their jobs. Thousands already have, so I welcome that the jobs guarantee from our 2016 manifesto now has cross-party support. This needs urgent action, and as the chief executive of Scottish Power said, "reports and plans don’t create jobs".

The jobs we need are in the sectors that will build a fairer, greener future, and one of these is ensuring all homes are warm and energy efficient. Earlier this year the Greens secured tens of millions of pounds for these programmes, but by going further and faster with this investment now, the Scottish Government could create thousands of jobs as well as tackling fuel poverty and the climate emergency.