September 17th, 2026 by Miriam Ross
The scale of the proposed public service reform in the Programme for Government has significant implications for the environment sector, which we are still considering. The Scottish Government has proposed merging NatureScot, SEPA, Zero Waste Scotland, and potentially Scottish Forestry into a single environmental agency. There is also a separate proposal, which appears less developed, to consolidate all public bodies involved in the management of public land.
Scottish Environment LINK members understand the significant fiscal challenges facing the Scottish Government and accept that Ministers are considering wide ranging reform to public services in this context. We accept that there are likely to be some rationalisations that could increase efficiency.
We also understand the wider context: that of a Scotland facing acute and worsening environmental pressures, and legal targets and duties on the Scottish Government relating to nature and climate. Any reorganisation of environmental agencies at this point comes precisely when those agencies need to redouble efforts to meet legal biodiversity targets, reduce climate emissions, and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Very little detail has been shared on the rationale for these proposals or the implications for public services. We can only currently comment on the broad principles.
As things stand, we haven’t yet seen a strong case made to merge NatureScot into a single environmental agency. Such a significant reform will inevitably be disruptive and there has been no detail shared on the implications for resourcing, responsibilities, and organisational focus of the new organisation at this crucial time. We are also not convinced that this reform will be able to deliver significant cost savings without having a direct impact on frontline services.
It is unclear how the proposal to consolidate public bodies involved in the management of public land would interact with this merger, as NatureScot also own and lease land, mainly National Nature Reserves. It is also unclear how such an arrangement would balance the very different objectives of public landowners.
Earlier this year, in recognition of the scale of the nature crisis, the Scottish Parliament passed the Natural Environment Act. Over the next few years, we have significant policy challenges to meet: the introduction and delivery of nature targets; the expansion of the protected site network to meet 30 by 30 and the related need for improved monitoring and site management; the ramping up of efforts on peatland restoration, native woodland creation, and restoration of the marine environment; and dealing with the increasing impacts of climate change, including wildfires and extreme weather.
LINK members remain open-minded about the public service reform agenda and the potential for the consolidation of some functions or responsibilities of public bodies into an expanded environmental agency. However, it is our view based on the information currently available that the policy challenges facing us will be best tackled through a continued standalone nature agency, and that agency should continue to have a significant role in land management.
We will engage constructively with these proposals when further detail is provided. Any reform to public bodies must reflect the urgency of the environmental crises Scotland faces.
Our environmental agencies must:
- have strong statutory objectives and powers to deliver for nature and climate;
- be well resourced to do their jobs;
- have regulatory functions that are evidence-led, transparent, and determined independently of other functions.
Our ultimate judgement on proposals for reform will reflect on whether new structures will deliver against these principles.
Statement supported by:
Action to Protect Rural Scotland (APRS)
Bright Green Nature
Buglife Scotland
CIEEM (Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management)
Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland
The Froglife Trust
Marine Conservation Society
Nourish Scotland
Plantlife Scotland
RSPB Scotland
Scottish Wild Land Group
Scottish Wildlife Trust
Soil Association Scotland
WWF Scotland
September 14th, 2026 by Miriam Ross
Environment charities and fishers have called for effective, science-led protections for Scotland’s seas as the Scottish government launches a long-overdue public consultation today on protections for wildlife in inshore marine protected areas (MPAs).
The consultation asks for views on proposals to restrict certain types of fishing gear in each MPA, depending on the wildlife within them. These protections were originally due to be implemented in 2016 but have faced repeated delays.
The Scottish government is facing scrutiny over its record on protecting the sea, with its own environmental watchdog, Environmental Standards Scotland, reporting in June that the government is failing to meet its legal duties in protecting the seabed.
Scottish Environment LINK, a coalition of leading environment charities, says implementing specially tailored fishing restrictions in marine protected areas is an essential step to helping Scotland’s marine life recover and restoring the fish and shellfish stocks on which many coastal communities rely for their livelihoods.
The charities are calling on the Scottish government to introduce restrictions based on scientific evidence of the harm caused to marine wildlife, including to protect sensitive seabed habitats from bottom trawling and dredging and to prevent the accidental capture of marine animals in fishing gear.
The proposals published today follow 15 years of Scottish government engagement with fishers, coastal community groups, local businesses and environmental organisations across Scotland. The online consultation is open to anyone to give their views.
More than 70 countries have introduced marine protected areas. Where these areas are well managed they help protect nature, reduce the impact of climate change, and support healthy fish populations and coastal communities.
Esther Brooker, senior marine policy officer at Scottish Environment LINK, said today: “The seas around Scotland’s coasts are incredibly rich in marine life, from whales, dolphins and basking sharks to seabed habitats like oyster beds, bright orange flame shell beds and pink maerl. And Scotland is globally important for seabirds.
“Our inshore waters also include spawning and nursery habitats that are vital for fish and shellfish stocks, and they’re where most of Scotland’s fishing fleet operates. They’re important for recreation and tourism too.
“But the life in our seas is in serious decline. Marine protected areas are supposed to protect and restore some of our most precious marine wildlife, but without protections in place, they’re little more than lines on a map. While bottom trawling and dredging are allowed to operate on sensitive seabed habitats, ocean ecosystems suffer, and the small-scale, low-impact fishing fleet that depends on these habitats also struggles.
“It’s time for the Scottish government to finally get effective, science-led protections in place in marine protected areas, to stop the destruction, and to start returning our amazing seas to health.”
Bally Philp, coordinator of the Scottish Creel Fishermen’s Federation, said today: “As a fisherman whose livelihood depends on the sea, I do not see protecting the marine environment and protecting fishing livelihoods as competing aims. Protecting and restoring seabed habitats and wider biodiversity is fundamental to productive fisheries and resilient coastal communities.
“After more than a decade of delay, effective management within Scotland’s inshore MPAs is a necessary first step. But success cannot be measured by lines on maps alone: the measures must be evidence-led, manage displaced fishing effort, sit alongside better management of wider inshore fisheries and provide a fair transition for those affected. Done properly, marine protection can help secure the future of fishing rather than diminish it.”
Harry Huyton, CEO of the Scottish Seabird Centre, said today: “Today’s long-awaited announcement is an important step forward. Scotland is a global stronghold for seabirds, with our coasts and islands home to over five million breeding seabirds like puffins, guillemots and gannets. Yet most species are in long-term decline. We look forward to working with the Scottish Government and others so that this process delivers the urgent protections that seabirds and our seas so desperately need.”
People can respond to the consultation at https://consult.gov.scot/marine-scotland/fisheries-management-measures-for-inshore-mpas/
Featured image: Cath Bain, WDC
September 1st, 2026 by Miriam Ross
In a new report released today, Scottish Environment LINK members have called on the Scottish government to do more to encourage and support natural woodland regeneration and colonisation by rebalancing how it funds and supports forestry.
Natural regeneration is the establishment of young trees within an existing woodland by natural means, while natural colonisation is the establishment of young trees on open ground, creating new woodlands.
The report argues that better support for natural woodland regeneration and colonisation would help Scotland meet its net zero targets, adapt to climate change and restore biodiversity.
While planting trees is the right solution in many places, says the report, more natural regeneration and colonisation could provide a cost-effective route to create ecologically-rich and long-term natural carbon stores. It could also make existing woodlands more resilient and enhance water quality and natural flood management.
The authors of the report recommend that the Scottish government shifts the balance of funding for forestry towards supporting natural regeneration, with 50% of funding ringfenced for native woodland creation and management.
They also recommend encouraging the uptake of natural regeneration and colonisation among land managers by supporting management costs, and supporting them to keep deer numbers at a level low enough to allow natural regeneration and colonisation to take place.
The report, ‘The case for natural regeneration of woodlands,’ was written by Gordon Gray Stephens of the Native Woods Cooperative (Scotland) Ltd, with support from the LINK Woodlands Group.
Featured image: Sandra Graham
August 28th, 2026 by olivia
Scottish Environment LINK has today launched a new Nature Protection Scorecard to track the performance of the Scottish government and public bodies in protecting and restoring the natural environment.
The scorecard collates a range of data to judge how well the Scottish government is performing and the extent to which public bodies are using their enforcement powers. While not intended to be comprehensive, the scorecard shines a spotlight on the Scottish public bodies with most significant responsibility for environmental delivery, and focuses on action and resourcing.
The level of monitoring of Scotland’s most important sites for nature is among the metrics tracked in the scorecard. The figures show that just under 3% of Scotland’s protected sites underwent site condition monitoring by NatureScot in 2025. This was a fall from 2021, when 5.3% of protected sites were monitored.
The monitoring of rivers and lochs has increased slightly over the past 3 years. 25% of rivers were visited by Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) Ecology staff in 2025, a rise from 19% in 2023. Monitoring of lochs was significantly lower, with only 14 of Scotland’s 334 lochs (4%) visited in 2025.
The scorecard also reveals that 4 out of 10 planning departments in Scotland’s local authorities have no in-house ecological expertise, with many relying on external consultants or, in some cases, using no ecological advice at all. Local councils are responsible for deciding which developments can go ahead and which cannot.
On farming, the scorecard shows that the proportion of farm funding spent directly on environmental outcomes has fallen from 7.7% in 2017-18 to just 3.6%.
Scottish Environment LINK commissioned polling by Survation to include in the scorecard, which shows that a growing number of people in Scotland say the state of our natural environment is getting worse. 44% of those surveyed said that Scotland’s natural environment has worsened in their lifetime – a rise of 5% since 2022.
The same poll found that around half of people in Scotland (49%) said that the government is not doing enough to protect the environment, with only a third (32%) saying they’re doing the right amount.
Dan Paris, director of policy and engagement at Scottish Environment LINK, said: “We need concerted environmental action from the Scottish government over the next few years. The Natural Environment Act means that the government must soon introduce legal targets to restore nature. And the impacts of climate change and the imperative to tackle it are coming increasingly clear.
“Our scorecard shows that many of Scotland’s public bodies don’t have the capacity to what’s required of them. It’s absolutely vital that environmental agencies are given the resources and the people they need to stop the degradation of our natural environment and help it recover.”
Scottish Environment LINK will update the scorecard annually.
August 6th, 2026 by olivia
Scotland’s leading environment charities have called on the Scottish government to commit to doubling the area of organic farmland by the end of the 2026-31 parliamentary session.
Scottish Environment LINK, a coalition of more than 50 environment charities, says increasing organic farming can help farm businesses, reduce climate emissions, and help nature by cutting pesticide use.
Scotland saw seven years of growth in organic farming from 2018 to 2025, with more land in organic conversion in 2025 than in any year since 2002. Scottish government funding to support farmers to convert helped to increase the organic share of agricultural land from 1.8 percent in 2021 to 3.3 percent in 2025, just 0.3 percent short of the government’s target to double the share between 2021 and 2026.
But environment charities say Scotland would benefit more from organic farming with increased growth. Scotland lags behind the European Union average of 11 percent, and Ireland, whose agriculture is comparable to Scotland’s, has committed to reach 10 percent of land by 2030.
Demand for organic food across the UK continues to grow, and Scotland’s land conversion rate is faster than in other UK nations, thanks in part to the Scottish government’s Agri Environment and Climate Scheme which supports farmers to convert to organic.
Pete Ritchie, director of Nourish Scotland and convenor of Scottish Environment LINK’s food and farming group, said today:
“Scotland has a massive opportunity to build on the success of the last few years and continue to reap the benefits of organic farming. The demand is there, and farmers and crofters can boost their business resilience by going organic because they’ll be spending less on inputs and won’t be exposed to volatile global fertiliser markets.
“Organic food is good for people, and organic farming is great for nature since it doesn’t use pesticides which are a major cause of nature loss. It also helps tackle climate change by reducing fossil fuel-based inputs.
“Organic is a win-win and it’s in everyone’s interest that the Scottish government maintains its successful support policy and sets a new target to double organic land by 2031.”
David McKay, co-director at Soil Association Scotland and vice-convener of Scottish Environment LINK’s food and farming group, said:
“Scotland is already leading the way in the UK in growth in organic land, and this has been driven by consistent policy support and investment from the Scottish government.
“The target set in 2021 set a clear direction of travel and Scottish farmers and growers have responded. However, Scotland still lags behind the EU average of 11 percent organic land and neighbours like Ireland are demonstrating real ambition to go further.
“Organic delivers on a wide range of Scottish government policy objectives, and ongoing support should be viewed as a strategic measure to reduce exposure to volatile global markets for artificial fertilisers and feed.”
Featured Image: Soil Association
July 2nd, 2026 by olivia
Scottish Environment LINK has secured vital grant funding from The Naturesave Trust, which will help mobilise nationwide action to protect Scotland’s rapidly degrading marine environment. This crucial initiative will focus on mobilising public support for marine protected areas and applying coordinated pressure on the Scottish government to deliver a robust, well-managed and ecologically effective marine protected area network.
The funding arrives at a critical time for marine conservation in Scotland. Despite a commitment to protect 30% of our seas by 2030, many of Scotland’s marine protected areas have remained poorly managed, with no fishing restrictions in place more than a decade after they were designated to protect ocean wildlife.
Repeated government delays to put proper protections in place threaten the health of Scotland’s marine ecosystems along with the coastal communities that depend on them. This places vulnerable habitats at risk, including vital kelp forests, seagrass meadows, and fish nursery grounds, as well as species such as whales and basking sharks.
Scottish Environment LINK’s marine project aims to build greater public understanding of the marine environment and provide citizens with the knowledge and confidence to participate meaningfully in marine decision-making. The project will help to generate public pressure, amplify the voices of coastal communities, and advocate for marine protection to be elevated to a top parliamentary priority.
Deborah Long, Chief Executive of Scottish Environment LINK, said:
“This support from Naturesave will be a much needed boost for Scottish Environment LINK’s work advocating for Scotland’s seas. By helping us launch vital community and parliamentary initiatives, this funding will help us secure the healthy, well-managed seas that Scotland desperately needs, where wildlife and coastal communities flourish and ecosystems are protected, connected and thriving.”
The Naturesave Trust is funded by the activities of Naturesave Insurance, an award-winning broker with over 30 years’ experience in providing ethical and sustainable personal and commercial insurance.
June 5th, 2026 by Miriam Ross
Demonstrators gathered outside the Scottish parliament on Thursday 4 June to call on MSPs to act urgently to restore Scotland’s nature.
Campaigners wearing bumblebee, red squirrel and bat costumes and holding puffin, curlew and swift puppets were joined at the demonstration by MSPs from all the political parties represented at Holyrood.
One in nine species in Scotland are at risk of extinction, with almost half of species decreasing in number since the 1970s. Scotland ranks in the lowest 15% of countries globally for the overall health of its biodiversity.
But with Scotland’s new Natural Environment Act requiring government ministers to set legally binding targets to restore nature, campaigners have called the start of the new Scottish parliament a “moment of hope”.
Deborah Long, chief executive of Scottish Environment LINK which organised the demonstration, said:
“This is a real moment of hope for Scotland’s nature. By setting targets and acting urgently to meet them, we have the chance to stop the loss of the nature we all love and to bring it back to health.
“But to make that happen, we need our leaders to treat nature as a priority, not just a ‘nice to have’. That’s why we’re calling on every MSP in the Scottish parliament to stand up for nature.
“Our natural environment is incredibly important to Scotland’s people, and that depth of feeling was evident as we stood outside parliament. Scotland’s nature shapes our lives in so many ways, and it will shape our future too. Not least, it’s vital to the fight against climate change. If we help nature recover, it will sustain our lives for generations to come.”
The Natural Environment Act, passed in January, followed years of campaigning by Scottish Environment LINK, a coalition of more than 50 environment charities including WWF Scotland, RSPB Scotland, the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the Soil Association Scotland, the Scottish Seabird Centre, the Woodland Trust Scotland, and many more.
May 25th, 2026 by olivia
Environmental charities have warned that Scotland’s flagship plan to restore nature is not yet delivering the change needed on the ground, as a new public tracker reveals that more than one in three actions set out in the plan are either delayed or have not been started.
The Scottish Biodiversity Strategy Delivery Plan (2024–2030), published by the Scottish Government, sets out how Scotland aims to halt nature loss by the end of the decade, including restoring peatlands, improving the health of our rivers, protecting our seas and supporting wildlife conservation. But a new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy Tracker, launched today by Scottish Environment LINK, shows a growing gap between promises and progress.
The tracker analyses all 136 actions in the plan and finds that around one in seven (18 actions) are complete, about half (69) are in progress, and more than a third are behind schedule (16 delayed and 33 not started).
Alongside delivery status, the tracker introduces a new nature recovery score, assessing how much specific actions could contribute to nature recovery. The results show that while activity is underway, it is not yet translating into meaningful large-scale recovery.
Scottish Environment LINK, a coalition of leading environment charities, launched the tracker to hold the Scottish Government and its agencies to account on nature restoration. The tracker will be updated regularly, with quarterly deep-dives into priority actions and a full annual review. The charities say the tracker will help identify delivery gaps early, strengthen scrutiny and pinpoint where more funding or stronger action is needed.
The findings come as Scotland enters a critical period for nature following the passing of the Natural Environment (Scotland) Act, which will require the government to set legally binding targets to restore nature.
Bruce Wilson, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the Scottish Wildlife Trust, one of the charities behind the tracker, said:
“We’re a nation of nature-lovers, and yet Scotland is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. The Scottish Government’s plan sets out what needs to happen but what matters now is action.
“What our tracker shows is that while there is a lot of activity, it’s not yet delivering the scale or speed of change needed to restore Scotland’s nature across our land and seas.
“The next few years are critical. This is when plans must turn into real action restoring habitats, protecting species, and tackling the causes of nature loss.
“The Scottish Government and its agencies share responsibility for making this work. Without faster progress Scotland risks missing its 2030 nature targets.”
Dr Paul Walton, Head of Habitats and Species at RSPB, also part of the coalition, said:
“Restoring Scotland’s nature is not a simple task, but it’s vital, and as a country we can do it. Scotland has the knowledge and expertise we need to stop the destruction of nature and to help it recover.
“The Scottish Government’s plan contains much that’s sensible, but a plan is only as good as its results. For it to work requires committed leadership and effective, sustained action. Our tracker is aimed at holding the Scottish Government and public bodies to account so that current and future generations can live in a country where nature and people can thrive.”
May 12th, 2026 by olivia
Scottish Environment LINK’s Scotland Loves Nature campaign has been named as a finalist for ‘campaign of the year’ in this year’s Scottish Charity Awards.
The awards are run annually by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO). This year’s shortlist includes 35 individuals and organisations under nine distinct categories from charities and voluntary groups across the country. Winners will be announced on 11 June 2026 in a celebratory awards ceremony hosted by broadcaster Sally Magnusson at the Raddison Blu in Glasgow.
Scottish Environment LINK launched the Scotland Loves Nature campaign in 2024 to call for legally binding government targets to restore nature. One in nine species in Scotland is at risk of extinction, and almost half have decreased in number since the 1970s.
Thousands of people supported the campaign by writing to their MSPs, signing petitions, demonstrating outside parliament and sharing moving stories about what nature means to them.
The campaign achieved its goal in 2026 when the Natural Environment Act was passed into law, requiring Scottish government ministers to set legally binding nature recovery targets – giving restoring nature the same priority status as tackling climate change.
Deborah Long, chief executive of Scottish Environment LINK, said:
“We’re delighted that Scotland Loves Nature is a finalist at the Scottish Charity Awards. Restoring Scotland’s nature on land and at sea is an urgent priority, and the new nature targets secured by our campaign should galvanise action for nature across society. A huge number of people have added their voices to this campaign, and it’s lovely to see it celebrated alongside so much fantastic work across the charity sector.”
Anna Fowlie, chief executive of SCVO said:
“Across Scotland and beyond, voluntary organisations are making an extraordinary difference, and the breadth and depth of their impact never fails to inspire. Our 2026 finalists epitomise this.
“Our voluntary sector is truly essential to Scottish society – we see the positive impact organisations and individuals make in communities across the country every single day.
“Best of luck to all of our finalists, and I look forward to celebrating with them in June as we highlight the phenomenal work each and every one of them contributes to.”
View the full shortlist for 2026
April 1st, 2026 by olivia
Focused leadership, expert staffing and an ‘early warning system’ will be key to meeting Scotland’s targets to restore nature, according to a new report released today by Scottish Environment LINK.
The coalition of more than 50 environment charities calls on the Scottish government to set ambitious but achievable targets, and makes a series of recommendations on how to ensure these are met in its report, ‘Hitting the targets: Delivering Scotland’s nature ambitions’.
Nature is in crisis globally, and in Scotland one in nine species is threatened with extinction. The Natural Environment Act, which became law this year, requires Scottish government ministers to set legally binding targets to restore Scotland’s wildlife and habitats.
Scotland is one of the most nature-depleted countries on the planet, ranking 212th out of 240 countries and territories for how much of its biodiversity remains. Yet it is home to habitats and species of global ecological significance, including peatlands, temperate rainforest and seabirds.
The new report calls on the Scottish government to set targets without delay. Restoring nature, say the report’s authors, will require, ‘a step change in how government operates, with the natural environment recognised as a core outcome across portfolios.’ They call for clear leadership from the responsible government minister, and funding that reflects the scale of the task.
The report also recommends the Scottish government makes greater use of experts in its nature restoration work. And since goals such as the recovery of native woodlands can take decades to achieve, the report calls for an early warning system that would measure actions like reducing deer densities and tackling invasive Rhododendron ponticum to assess whether its wider goals are on track.
The report emphasises the need for rapid action and sets out priority actions for the 2026-2031 Scottish Parliament, including early introduction of fisheries restrictions in inshore marine protected areas, reform of agricultural funding to help farmers and crofters restore nature and reduce climate emissions, and reform of forestry funding to support the natural regeneration of biodiverse woodlands.
Photo by Danny Carden
Read the report in full here.
