Energy and Environmental Building Standards (Consultation)

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its stage 2 consultation on proposed changes to energy and environmental building standards, what consideration it will give to supply chain capacity alongside the consultation responses when developing the final standards. (S7O-00472)

Supply chain capacity is being considered through the impact assessment process that informs changes to building regulations and guidance. Consultation responses, together with ongoing engagement with industry and other stakeholders during development of the Passivhaus equivalent standard, are helping to inform that assessment.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting industry readiness and workforce development, and is already working on the preparedness of the construction sector with stakeholders. We also intend to provide a two-year period between publication of the final guidance and implementation of the new standard, allowing sufficient time for industry to prepare.

In the recent consultation on the building regulations, there were two options for the thermal value for windows. Scotia, an important employer in my constituency, has advised that if the lower value of 0.8 is chosen, no Scottish firm can supply the products to that specification. Given what the minister said about considering the supply chain, will that be factored in? Will consideration be given to reverting to the high-performance standard thermal value of 1.2, which will provide better value, avoid imported products and protect Scottish jobs? Will that be taken into account as part of the decision-making process?

I thank Alan Brown for raising that important issue. I reassure him that the impact on the Scottish supply chain is an important consideration and will be carefully weighed alongside the other benefits of the changes.

The consultation on alternative window U-values was specifically intended to gather evidence on those matters and to better understand the practical implications for the industry, as the member has mentioned. During the consultation period, my officials met the Glass and Glazing Federation and its members. We will continue to engage constructively with the sector and to consider all the consultation responses and supporting evidence before reaching a final decision on the standards.

Willie Rennie raises another important point. I stress that we are looking at a Passivhaus equivalent, not Passivhaus. That is a very important distinction to make.

Willie Rennie rightly points to a number of innovations. They are happening not only in Scotland, but we have some really good suppliers in Scotland that are looking at different types of housing that can be built, particularly, but not only, in rural and island areas, to assist with the housing challenges that they have. I will certainly keep the point that Mr Rennie has raised in mind.

We will always consider the impact of regulations. Again, I note that it is about a Passivhaus equivalent. We need to be very careful about the language that we are using.

The reason that we bring in regulations around building safety and standards is that we want people to live in safe, secure, warm and affordable homes. That includes, for example, assessing the amount that people are having to spend on their energy in Scotland. It is also about ensuring that we have housing that fits the needs of the population, which includes disabled people and people who, as they age, may require different types of housing. It is about them not requiring to move house in order to be able to have a home that satisfies their needs.

Regulations have an impact on the people who use the housing. I appreciate that they also have an impact on the construction industry and developers, which is why I regularly meet developers and their representatives to discuss those impacts.