SNP is accused of 'climate hypocrisy' for approving Peterhead gas plant on the SAME DAY Holyrood debated climate

The Scottish Government gave the green light to SSE and Equinor's proposed 900-megawatt gas-fired power station at Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, on the very day Holyrood was holding a debate on Scotland's standing as a world leader on climate action. Katherine May, head of Oxfam Scotland, called it "a startling act of climate hypocrisy." Green MSP Maggie Chapman warned that the approval enlarges what she described as Scotland's single largest source of climate pollution.

Developers argue that carbon capture technology could reduce emissions from the new facility by over 90%.

Campaign group Uplift warned the decision locks Scotland into "30 more years" of expensive gas dependency, driving up energy bills.

Friends of the Earth Scotland branded the consent "a catastrophic failure" to protect people from climate and energy cost crises.