National Islands Plan: draft

Introduction – A Continuing Dialogue

The publication of Scotland’s first National Islands Plan marked a significant milestone in the policy dialogue between the Scottish Government and island communities.

Delivering on one of the main provisions of the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018, the Plan placed island communities at the forefront of national policy-making and promoted greater cross-government coordination of policies and investments affecting their lives.

Extensive engagement with communities and local authorities informed the structure and content of the first Plan, which included 13 Strategic Objectives and over 130 individual commitments. Since 2021, Annual Reports have kept the Scottish Parliament and the public informed of progress with its implementation.

As required by the Islands Act, a full review was carried out in 2023. A public consultation comprising in-person events, virtual workshops, and a dedicated online portal gave everyone with an interest in the Plan the opportunity to comment on its impact and effectiveness. An independent report summarising the main findings was published in April 2024.

The review confirmed that, while progress has been made, significant challenges remain. This second National Islands Plan responds to consultation feedback and renews our dialogue with communities and local government in support of island ambitions. It builds on the human rights-based approach at the heart of the first Plan and reflects the recommendations of the Scottish Human Rights Commission^[1] to strengthen the realisation of rights across island and rural areas – particularly through direct engagement with islanders and a more flexible, localised approach to delivery.

Through this Plan, we are reaffirming our commitment to further embed Island Communities Impact Assessments (ICIAs) into policy development and decision-making across government. We will continue to work with relevant authorities to ensure that ICIAs are applied consistently and transparently, helping to shape policies that reflect the realities of island life and promote a deeper understanding of island circumstances.

This Plan also aligns closely with the Scottish Government’s four overarching priorities – tackling child poverty, growing the economy, accelerating climate action and improving public services – ensuring that island needs and opportunities are clearly represented in national delivery frameworks.

Direct engagement with islanders and their lived experiences has again been central to our approach. We held in-person events across all island areas, meeting islanders in village halls and community centres, and hosted online sessions to ensure wide participation and representation.

Local authorities have been close, constructive partners throughout the Plan’s development. Their advice and contributions, combined with community feedback, have helped shape priorities and actions. We have also worked with a range of public bodies – including Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Crown Estate Scotland, NatureScot and Consumer Scotland – and will maintain this multi-agency approach throughout implementation.

Table 1 You Asked, We Did – Key Themes

You Asked

The first National Islands Plan had too many Strategic Objectives and commitments.

We Did

We have condensed the number of Strategic Objectives from 13 to seven. This Plan also features fewer commitments compared to the first iteration.

You Asked

The new Plan should prioritise Strategic Objectives.

We Did

While reflecting on shared challenges and opportunities, the Plan acknowledges that every island is unique and that priorities are best set locally. On that basis, we do not propose a top-down prioritisation.

You Asked

Better and clearer links between national and local.

We Did

We have worked closely with local authorities to strengthen connections between the National Islands Plan and local planning. We have given greater emphasis to developing a national framework that enables local solutions.

You Asked

A clearer monitoring and evaluation framework, with regular opportunities for communities to provide feedback and receive updates.

We Did

Information on monitoring, reporting and engaging with stakeholders is provided at page 66. The Plan commits to more regular communication with island communities about progress made with implementation.

You Asked

More information on who will be responsible for delivering each commitment and timescales for implementation.

We Did

The Implementation Route Map published alongside this Plan provides details about delivery timeframes and partners involved in implementing each commitment.

You Asked

The Plan should not duplicate commitments that are already underway, or which the government has a statutory obligation to deliver.

We Did

We have put greater focus on forward-looking actions, targeted interventions and strengthening the island dimension of ongoing initiatives.

Looking ahead, the Plan acts as a bridge between national ambitions and local realities – supporting a fair transition to Net Zero, stronger island economies and sustainable, resilient communities. It responds to island challenges that are intensifying in the context of climate change, demographic imbalance and the cost-of-living, while recognising the innovation, creativity and collective strengths that continue to define island life.

The 2023 public consultation confirmed strong support for a new National Islands Plan with fewer Strategic Objectives and commitments. The first Plan was recognised as comprehensive and ambitious, and respondents praised its success in identifying the key challenges facing islands. However, respondents also noted that its broad scope – covering both ongoing and new initiatives – made it difficult to understand which policies and investments it was directly responsible for delivering. In other words, what difference it made that would not have happened otherwise.

The consultation also underlined that many of the challenges identified in the first Plan persist, highlighting the need for continued and sustained action.

In response, this new Plan adopts a leaner structure, condensing the number of Strategic Objectives from 13 to seven and placing greater emphasis on forward-looking actions where it can add distinct value. In this way, we aim to strengthen its role in delivering positive benefits, while building on policy interventions already underway. While continuing to reflect interdependencies across island-facing policies and investments, this Plan introduces a targeted set of actions that are tangible and directly relevant to our islands’ challenges and opportunities.

As set out in the Implementation Route Map, each commitment is accompanied by a delivery timeframe and a list of delivery partners, improving transparency and clarifying responsibilities in line with feedback from the consultation.

Connecting National and Local

We recognise that every island is different, with its own unique mix of opportunities, challenges and aspirations. While providing a refreshed national framework for action applicable to all island areas, this Plan avoids one-size-fits-all solutions and embraces place-based approaches.

We have placed strong emphasis on avoiding prescriptive top-down statements. Instead, the commitments set out in this Plan are designed to provide national-level support for solutions that are developed and delivered locally, in ways that are meaningful and relatable for the communities involved.

For the same reasons, we have not ranked the Strategic Objectives in order of priority. While consultation showed that some challenges and ambitions are shared across multiple areas, we believe a rigid and centralised approach would run contrary to the principle that communities are best placed to establish local priorities.

Consultation feedback also encouraged us to reflect on how the Plan dovetails with, and supports, locally developed plans and strategies. Given the diversity of our islands and local variations in planning approaches, identifying a single overarching mechanism that is fully representative of local arrangements and terminologies has proved challenging. Concerns also emerged about implying a hierarchy between the National Islands Plan and local efforts, which would run against the ethos of this document.

We have instead engaged directly with each council – and will continue to do so throughout implementation – to ensure stronger integration between this Plan and local planning frameworks, particularly through established mechanisms such as community planning partnerships. This will enable greater flexibility in local delivery, supporting a more tailored approach to strengthening the connections between this document and locally developed plans.

In addition, through this Plan we have committed to supporting island communities to participate in planning processes, encouraging a bottom-up approach and empowering them to actively shape their futures through tools such as Local Place Plans and Community Action Plans.