Speeches by Crichton.

“Are they assemblies or focus groups? What you are describing is the way you would select a focus group, almost.”

“Interesting, because in polarised debates like referenda or Brexit, you found politics coming into it. Are people stuffing these citizens’ assemblies with people who represent their point of view?”

“Polly has a follow-up question, so does Polly want to go first.”

“Thanks all for coming in. Time is short so I will keep my questions brief on community engagement and overcoming that opposition. As Polly alluded to, the opposition to renewables is a lightning rod for another kind of political position to the Government. You get these three themes of people being completely sceptical…”

“How about starting with giving them a share of the development?”

“Lorraine, you alluded to that balance between fast and fair. What we see is the UK Government and the Scottish Government—and a lot of these renewables will be built in Scotland—coming together to agree a shorter planning process, a shorter time to appeal against these things; basically speeding things up. Do you think…”

“The other side of this—as you discussed, Stephanie—is getting bogged down in legalese and things not getting done, and the temperature is increasing every summer while we do nothing. People that can afford it do it, but most people feel not listened to when government or councils or planning processes go through.”

“That comes back to the original engagement you and I had, that the people who tend to engage in that are the kind of people who are for renewables but—”

“Or people who will use it have another political agenda, a party political agenda perhaps, who will use renewables as a lightning rod to build opposition against the current Government.”

“Stephanie, a couple of questions. How do you make citizens’ assemblies representative? I am guessing that the people who engage with the climate debate are usually people, like you said, who have high support for renewables, “I am not against renewables, but—” and then you get the engaged people who are not against ren…”

“These are retirees, I am guessing.”

“Interesting, because in polarised debates like referenda or Brexit, you found politics coming into it. Are people stuffing these citizens’ assemblies with people who represent their point of view?”

“I want to respectfully disagree with Polly. I think we have heard some news today, and it is almost 6 pm so I can do a news summary, and you have told us that 3,000 or 4,000 people will have died this summer because of climate change. You have told us that the GDP will fall off a cliff by 2070 unless we act. You have t…”

“Yes, and Miatta as well. So I just want to ask each one of you to give your top recommendation on how we change that story and how we change that message.”

“It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) for bringing this debate to the House, and I wish him well in his recovery. A few years ago, not many of us in rural Scotland would have known about the importance of defibrillat…”

“I reiterate the concerns raised last night by my fellow journalist and hon. Friend the Member for Earley and Woodley (Yuan Yang) in highlighting Gaza as the deadliest war for journalists. Over 189 have been killed since October 2023, despite reporters being categorised as protected civilians under international law. Is…”

“9. What recent steps his Department has taken to help secure peace in the Middle East.”

“I thank the Foreign Secretary for his statement and for his stamina over the past two hours. I assure him that the horror of the unfolding famine in Gaza and concern about the future of the hostages are felt just as strongly on the Atlantic coast of Scotland as they are on the shores of the eastern Mediterranean. Inter…”

“Thank you both for coming in. Time is short, so in terms of mission-led government, if I ask my questions and you nod in agreement, that will save a lot of time. I have some questions on community energy and on the workforce, Secretary of State.”

“We had some exchanges last week in the Commons on community energy schemes. I asked you if you thought that NESO should prioritise good connections for community-owned schemes and designated ones needed for the 2030 transition. Where are you on that?”