The Scottish Government must protect spending on the natural environment in its upcoming budget, campaigners have said.
The call comes after it was announced that the Scottish Government will receive an additional £3.4 billion in funding following the UK budget.
Earlier this year Scottish Ministers were criticised after money allocated to councils for nature restoration and flood prevention projects were diverted to fund pay settlements.
The in-year cut followed other cuts to environmental spending, including significant cuts to the Forestry Grant Scheme which funds woodland creation, and to nature funding available to farmers.
Recent polling commissioned by Scottish Environment LINK found that 8 in 10 people in Scotland have noticed environmental harm in their local area.
Deborah Long, Chief Officer at Scottish Environment LINK, said:
“Scotland loves nature, and people expect government to act to protect the environment around them.
“But government can’t tackle the climate and nature crises with shrinking budgets.
“After the UK budget we now have certainty that the Scottish Government can more than afford to protect environmental spending in real terms.
“The First Minister has been clear that protecting the environment is a priority for his government – that needs to be reflected when we see the Scottish budget next month.”
Jo Pike, Chief Executive at Scottish Wildlife Trust, added:
“Direct spending on nature is tiny compared to its importance in our lives. Nature is our life support system, the foundation of our society and economy, and a vital part of tackling climate change. But nature is in decline and we urgently need more investment to help it recover. Key budgets have been squeezed in recent years and the reality is that every day we delay finding the investment, the more expensive it becomes to find solutions.
“Helping nature recover will deliver a huge number of benefits for people, communities and Scotland as a whole.”