What’s the state of our nation?

News release 5th September 2007

Report reveals challenges ahead for a sustainable Scotland

Government’s independent advisor, the Sustainable Development Commission reveals Scotland is a long way from being a sustainable nation.

The Commission has just published a comprehensive assessment of progress made by the Scottish Government towards commitments in Choosing Our Future – Scotland’s sustainable development strategy.

Choosing Our Future aims to make Scotland more sustainable by addressing economic, social and environmental issues simultaneously. It identifies 21 key areas to indicate progress (highlighted overleaf grouped according to the 5 themes of the new Scottish administration).

Professor Jan Bebbington of the Sustainable Development Commission said,

"The indicators show good progress in some areas such as energy. However, other areas, such as homelessness, have got worse."

"The new administration must work hard to improve the state of our nation and meet the challenges ahead."

Lack of progress is frequently the result of conflicting strategies within Government. For example, the National Transport Strategy and the Route Development Fund have not been integrated with the Scottish Government’s wider aims of reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.

The Commission also highlights areas of opportunity, including the potential for developing a sustainable food policy. It is widely accepted this would have positive impact on many areas of Scottish life, including the nation’s health and the agricultural industry, as well as reducing carbon emissions.

Professor Jan Bebbington continued,

"While our assessment found there is still much more work to do, fully implementing this strategy is essential to ensure the future development of Scotland is sustainable. Choosing Our Future is a sound strategy which is well respected and actively supported by stakeholders."

"The Commission looks forward to working with the new Scottish Government over the coming year to ensure further progress is made ahead of next year’s assessment."

• Read the Executive Summary of our assessment

• Download our full review of progress towards a sustainable Scotland

• Read Commissioner Jan Bebbington's speech from the Parliamentary reception which launched the State of the Nation report

• The case studies section of our website provides real examples of sustainable development in Scotland

• Link to further information on the key indicators and data sources

• The findings of the Commission’s first assessment of progress are based on independent research by Momenta