Marine and coastal restoration plan consultation: Scottish Government response

Scottish Government Response to Consultation December 2025

We asked

On 29^th July 2025 the Scottish Government published a consultation seeking views on a draft Marine and Coastal Restoration Plan. Publishing the plan is a commitment under the first Delivery Plan for the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy (SBS) Objective 1: to accelerate restoration and regeneration. A total of 88 responses were received to the consultation. Sixty-one responses were submitted by organisations, with the remaining 27 responses from individuals.

The consultation was structured around the five themes within the draft plan, each of which included a series of proposed objectives and underpinning actions. The consultation sought views on respondents’ priorities for the plan and whether actions should be included in this plan, future plans or not at all. Once respondents provided their views on the five themes, there were also more general questions relating to views on the contribution the plan as drafted would make to accelerating restoration in Scottish coasts and waters, and the overall content.

You said

Analysis of consultation responses was carried out by social research agency The Lines Between. For each theme, the package of objectives and actions generally received good levels of support. The consultation yielded very rich and helpful suggestions for how actions could be implemented. There was also support for the plan as a whole and its potential to accelerate active restoration in Scotland. The main recurrent theme from respondents with critical feedback, was the focus of the plan on active restoration.

This document outlines our response to the results of that analysis (including issues raised which we will need to consider as actions within the plan are implemented) and how we have used the outcomes of the consultation to finalise the plan and associated impact assessments. Our response looks first at overall feedback on the draft plan - including overall priorities across the themes - and then the analysis for each of the five themes in turn.

We did

The consultation responses generated a large amount of constructive feedback which will be invaluable in implementing actions within the plan. Based on the feedback provided, we have not removed or significantly amended the existing objectives and actions which were proposed in the draft plan, but have added one action under Theme 1: Restoration opportunities and priorities, to work with nature conservation advisors to identify potential opportunities for active restoration in areas where measures to manage pressures are in place (see more detailed section on Theme 1 below).

We recognise that some stakeholders have fundamental concerns about the scope of the plan, in particular the primary focus on active restoration rather than pressure management (or ‘passive’ restoration). We recognise the intrinsic links with pressure management. This is why we have been clear throughout the development of the plan that pressure management is within the remit of the plan where it is needed to support active restoration. Given the significant body of policy work with a focus on pressure management already underway or in development, the actions set out in this plan primarily target active restoration in the first instance as this is an area where Scottish Government has not had a clear policy to date, unlike with pressure management. However, the plan includes a specific action to ensure that pressure management supports active restoration where necessary, and elements of pressure management are a core part of several actions across the plan. Further measures relating to pressure management may be revisited as part of the five-year review cycle of the plan. As we implement the plan we will also continue to link in with wider marine environmental policies. Our response on this point is covered in more detail below.

The finalised plan has been published alongside this response and includes the full list of objectives and actions which will be implemented over the five years covered by this first plan.

Overall feedback on the plan

Overall, 64% of those responding felt that the plan will support acceleration of restoration in Scottish coasts and waters (43% felt it would do this ‘a lot’ and 21% ‘a little’). 68% of respondents agreed with the content of the plan (38% strongly agreed, 30% agreed).

There was broadly support for the objectives and actions included in the draft plan, and these are discussed in further detail under each of the themes. On average, 73% of those responding thought each action should be included in the plan, 12% felt they should be reserved for future plans, 3% felt each action should not be included and 12% were unsure. Looking across the themes, objectives from themes 1 and 2 (Restoration opportunities and priorities, and Regulatory environment) were generally rated as of highest importance, although sixteen out of the seventeen objectives were ranked as important to some extent by at least two thirds of those responding.

There was overall support for the plan and its aims and feedback were generally constructive. However, there was also persistent criticism voiced throughout the consultation relating to the scope of the plan, its perceived lack of action in relation to passive restoration/pressure management (both within the plan and in wider Scottish Government policy), and the level of ambition.

Response

We are pleased with the overall level of support for the plan and the package of actions proposed. While we are disappointed that some organisations are not supportive of the scope and scale of this first plan, in our view it will nevertheless deliver important benefits for biodiversity and nature restoration in Scotland and fill an important gap in our policy framework. However, we acknowledge the strength of feeling in the sector regarding the importance of pressure management in reversing biodiversity decline. We also note the strong support for nearly all individual actions in the plan, which suggests the issue is less with what is contained in the plan and relates more to what some respondents feel the plan is missing.

While we acknowledge the concerns raised, there is value in setting out key policies and actions relating to active restoration, including actions to ensure that pressure management supports active restoration where necessary. Throughout the development of the plan, we have noted the significant body of policy work already underway with a focus on pressure management in the marine environment. The Scottish Government’s position remains that for this plan to add value and avoid duplication of effort, it must target the policy gap surrounding active restoration in the first instance. We have therefore opted to ensure the plan is concise, practical and action-focused. Elements of pressure management are already a core part of several actions within the plan, and we have also been clear that pressure management may be revisited as a central focus for future iterations of the plan as it is reviewed every five years. Similarly, as we implement the plan we will continue to link in with wider marine environmental policies; we agree that action to achieve our vision for Scotland’s seas cannot be taken in isolation.