Scottish Government ‘railroaded’ 51 major energy projects across Highlands in just three years as Tories slam quango that responsible for ‘industrial jungles’
The Scottish Government has “railroaded” more than 20 per cent of all Scotland’s major energy developments across the Highlands in the last three years.
According to new figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives the body that agrees major projects agreed to 236 plans and rejected just eight.
That means either a failure rate of just three per cent or a success rate of 97 per cent for applicants of pylons, wind farms and battery storage projects.
The process removes planning approval from councils and places it in the hands of Scottish Ministers via Energy Consents Unit recommendations.
That effectively cuts out local views as local authorities are only able to object to such planning applications, though this sometimes results in a public local inquiry.
Now the Tories have revealed that by far the greatest number of applications in the last few years have been agreed for the Highlands – 51 in total.
Moray also saw double-digit approvals of energy projects across its countryside – 13 in all – as did Argyll and Bute with 19.
Dumfries and Galloway has had 30 industrial schemes given the green light, while 24 have been passed in Aberdeenshire.
The wave of developments provoked serious concerns about the industrialisation of the Highlands, new protest groups sprang up over the imposition of energy projects.
Scottish Conservative shadow energy secretary Douglas Lumsden said: “The high approval rate of applications compared to those being rejected cements my fears that areas of our countryside are being railroaded into industrial jungles.
“SNP ministers have no understanding of the magnitude of this issue and are treating our rural communities as an afterthought by not engaging with them during the planning process.
“Supporting our rural communities also means protecting our beautiful landscape and ensuring it is not damaged by new energy infrastructure.
“The SNP government has no empathy for the concerns of people living and working in rural areas who fear becoming imprisoned by pylons, wind farms and battery storage plants.
“That is why the Scottish Conservatives would guarantee local communities the final say when it comes to energy infrastructure getting the green light.”
