Scotland Against Spin’s take on “Onshore electricity generation – Electricity Act threshold”: the Scottish Government Consultation

Please do respond to this very important consultation.

Fulfilling a commitment to the Scottish Parliament’s Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee in response to the Scotland Against Spin Petition PE1864, Increase the ability of communities to influence planning decisions for onshore windfarms, the Scottish Government has issued a final consultation on raising the 50MW threshold for onshore generating stations.

The Scottish Government’s Consultation on “Onshore electricity generation – Electricity Act threshold” can be found here

The introductory words to the Consultation document set out succinctly what this is all about:

We are seeking views on increasing the 50MW threshold which determines whether applications for onshore electricity generating stations are decided by Scottish Ministers or by the relevant planning authority. 

In Scotland, applications for onshore electricity generation projects are considered through two different routes.

The Scottish Ministers are responsible for deciding applications to build, operate or modify onshore electricity generating stations with capacities exceeding 50 megawatts (MW) under powers contained in the Electricity Act 1989. Where consent is granted under Section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989, Scottish Ministers have the power under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 to grant ‘deemed’ planning permission.

Applications concerning onshore electricity generating stations with capacities of 50MW or less are largely decided by planning authorities under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, as amended.

This consultation invites views on increasing the current 50MW threshold which determines whether applications for onshore electricity generating stations are made to Scottish Ministers or the relevant planning authority.

There have been previous consultations, though nothing has changed.   The fault-line running through this question broadly represents the conflict between those who want large-scale applications to be rubber stamped by the Scottish government and those who want local opinions to carry more weight.   As we are told regarding the last consultation:

Broadly speaking, views were mixed with planning authorities, communities, and third sector groups generally in favour of change, whilst industry, including property and the land management sector, represented the majority of those not in favour.

This consultation reports that out of the 101 respondents to the question asked in the last 2024 consultation:
 “Should the current threshold of 50MW for applications for electricity generation which are to be determined by authorities be altered?”
41 (40.5%) agreed the threshold should be altered, 20 (19.8%) disagreed and 40 (39.6%) expressed no view.
Despite the previous clear majority response in favour of changing the 50MW threshold in 2024, the Scottish Government chose to ignore the democratic results of that consultation and to continue to favour the minority opinion from landowners and commercial entities to continue to allow consent to be awarded centrally by Scottish Ministers for electricity generators over 50 MW for the whole of Scotland.
The decision to continue with a 50MW threshold is all the more difficult to understand given the Scottish Government’s acknowledgement of the Verity House Agreement in 2023 that “decision-making should be ‘local by default, national by agreement’ recognising that public responsibilities shall generally be exercised, in preference, by those authorities which are closest to the citizen.”

Although two years have passed since that last, very similar consultation,  Scotland Against Spin welcomes this 2026 Consultation, but hopes that democracy will prevail and majority responses  and the views of individuals will be taken seriously to underpin any changes to the Electricity Act.
We support changing the threshold, and this is in accordance with the stated aims of our five year petition to the Scottish Parliament, which has received cross party support in the Scottish Parliament.  That petition can be read here

However we have to make it clear that there is little point in raising the threshold, thus giving local authorities the power to make decisions on ever larger wind farms or other forms of generating stations, (which can still be appealed), if the views and wishes of the local community can still be ignored. Both must come together as a package – raise the threshold and increase the ability of communities to influence planning decisions as called for in our Petition.

As the Consultation says, “Increasing the 50MW threshold, whether for all or only some technologies, would transfer responsibility for deciding more applications to planning authorities for consideration at a local level.”   We believe this is vital in the interests of local democracy and to ensure that the views of local people are taken more seriously.   This is all the more important because, as the Consultation notes, there has been:

…a significant increase in proposals for new electricity generation and storage. Our statistics show that the volume of applications made to Scottish Ministers has more than quadrupled over the last 20 years, with 15 applications made between 2001/03 and 70 applications made between 2021/23.

Wind farm proposals today may include turbines greater than 180m in height and with a generation capacity of 5-7MW each. This means a wind farm proposal comprising approximately 8 or 9 turbines is now likely to meet the 50MW threshold and require determination by Scottish Ministers. In contrast, an application for a wind farm submitted in 2004 comprised 22 turbines of 111.5m in height and a generation capacity of 2-3 MW each, with a maximum combined generation capacity of 51MW, whilst an application submitted in 1996 comprised 31 turbines with a maximum generating capacity of only 18.6MW.

The Consultation questions are to be found here (Annex C, on page 16 of the document):

Although ScotGov insists on the use of its Respondent Information Form, you can respond in one of three ways, as you prefer – via the hub:

https://consult.gov.scot/planning-architecture-and-regeneration/electricity-act-thresholds/

Or by email to : planningconsultations@gov.scot

Or by post, to:

Directorate for Planning
Architecture and Regeneration
Scottish Government
Area 2F South
Victoria Quay
Edinburgh
EH6 6QQ

The closing date for responses is 27^th March 2026.

For once, the Consultation notes are relatively short, and we recommend reading them in full before responding to the Consultation.   Happily, also, there are only six questions, which makes a welcome change from previous Consultations.

We set out below the six questions with our views on them.   These are offered as a means to assist communities and individuals affected by the plans to respond to the questions.   They are for guidance only, and everyone is of course completely free to answer as they wish.   However, we hope our views may be helpful.

1. Should there be a single threshold applicable to all technologies?

Yes.   We believe that different thresholds would be confusing and unnecessarily complicated.   A single threshold makes sense, both in terms of logical coherence and so as to enable that affected locals can readily understand the system.   However, there is a strong argument to the effect that all BESS applications should be heard by local authorities, in line with legislation applying in England and Wales (The Electricity Storage Facilities (Exemption) (England and Wales) Order 2020), given the particularly significant  and hazardous impacts these could have on local communities.It is important to recognise the installed capacity of a BESS, rather than the very much lower generating capacity of a BESS.

2. What threshold should apply for applications for electricity generation to be determined by planning authorities?

The options are 50MW, 100MW, or 150MW.

We believe 150MW is the most appropriate threshold of those mentioned.   Our understanding is that the average of wind farms in scoping is around 130MW (based on 63 schemes in scoping proposing a total of 8,205 MW), and we believe that the threshold should be higher than the average figure.  However we must make it clear that there is little point in raising the threshold, thus giving local authorities the power to make decisions on ever larger wind farms or other forms of generating stations, (which can still be appealed), if the views and wishes of the local community can still be ignored. Both must come together as a package – raise the threshold and increase the ability of communities to influence planning decisions as called for in our Petition.

3. Any change to the threshold would apply only to new applications. Do you have any comments on transitional arrangements?

Transitional arrangements should ensure that local communities are not disadvantaged.   If the threshold is increased, then perhaps existing applications, below any new threshold, but still dealt with under current provisions, should include an additional obligation on the part of Ministers to consult with the local authorities which would otherwise be responsible for hearing the planning application.   A two tier process during any transitional period would not be desirable, so measures which reduce the risk of similar applications being dealt with in different ways during the transitional period would be welcome.

4. Do you have any other comments to add?

Whilst it is important that planning applications are, so far as possible, heard and dealt with by local authorities, equality of arms is also a vital consideration if the planning process is to be fair and is not to operate to the disadvantage of local communities.   In addition to changing the threshold and increasing the ability of communities to influence planning decisions,  we believe that local authorities should be empowered to ensure local communities are given sufficient professional help to engage in the planning process as outlined in our Petition.

5. Do you have any comments on the partial and draft impact assessments undertaken?

We do not understand why it was considered appropriate to conduct only a partial Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA) that considers the costs and benefits, particularly with regard to business.   Local businesses can be directly adversely affected by applications relating to electricity generation, storage and related aspects, particularly with regard to the tourist business, which is vitally important in many parts of Scotland.

Similarly, the potential impacts on children, island communities and the environment suggest to us that full impact assessments are required.

The adverse impacts of new major substations, very high voltage transmission lines (electromagnetic radiation) and BESS should be assessed against future well being and health impacts upon children in particular.
It is patently obvious that rural communities in Scotland are disadvantaged by bearing the brunt of renewable generation to support Government Net Zero targets. It is absolutely necessary that a Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment is required to consider the inequalities of outcome caused by socio-economic disadvantage, when making strategic decisions

For major generating or infrastructure developments sited on or off shore for Scotland’s island communities, An Island Communities Impact Assessment (ICIA) is imperative. The economy and survival of these communities is often particularly fragile and reliant on tourism, crofting and fishing. Recent changes to the Electricity Act have already removed rights of representation and self determination in response to Net Zero policies, to centralised Scottish Government decision making. An ICIA should have occurred before the recent changes to to Electricity Act. A contemporaneous  ICIA should underpin any future legislative change.

6. Do you have any suggestions for additional sources of information on the potential impacts of the proposals that could help inform our final assessments?

It is a requirement under Environmental Impact Legislation that impacts of each planned development is required to be assessed on a site specific basis.  Local information is therefore key to providing a comprehensive and relevant Environmental Impact Statement and for these reasons it should be imperative that more prominence is given to information and opinions expressed by individuals and communities local to a development.
The requirements of the Aarhus Convention, to which the Scottish Government is a cosignatory, should be embedded in planning management and in particular to any amendment of the Electricity Act. The Aarhus convention requires the provision of full environmental impact assessments and that the views and opinions of the public to that information are heard, recorded and answered by decision makers. Unfortunately, in the pursuit of Net Zero goals, those public rights have been eroded.

UPDATE:  We have just been notified that South Lanarkshire Council Planners have recommended that Councillors support the raising of the 50MW threshold to 150MW.  Report on link below.

260212 Electricity Consents Report (FC)