Lawrence joined other sector leaders, including Stephanie Mander, social justice policy manager at Citizens Advice Scotland, and Charandeep Singh, chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, to discuss the practical and systemic challenges facing households and businesses as the UK moves towards net zero.

During his evidence session, Lawrence highlighted key issues affecting Scottish households:

• The impact of standing charges on consumers, particularly those in fuel poverty, and the lack of control households have over these costs.
• The shortage of skilled contractors across the retrofit supply chain, which risks slowing delivery of critical energy efficiency improvements.
• The importance of schemes like ECO, their measurable outcomes, and the remaining gap in support for vulnerable households.

“Providing evidence to the Scottish Affairs Committee gave us an important opportunity to bring the Scarf perspective to national discussions on energy and net zero,” said Lawrence Johnston. “We’re committed to ensuring that the voices of communities and households across Scotland are heard in policy decisions, and that proposed solutions work in practice, not just on paper.”