Author: Kristen Nicolson
With the upcoming Scottish Election on 7 May 2026, let’s take a brief look to see where water policy fits in the political agenda of the six main political parties. Despite water being one of Scotland’s most important natural assets, other issues such as the NHS and the cost-of-living have taken precedence in the pre-election campaigns and debates. While these issues are undoubtedly important, the challenges which Scotland faces in water governance will only worsen in the coming years. Thus, it is important to understand how the different parties seek to tackle, or not, various water governance issues in the upcoming parliament.
Water policies feature most prominently in the Labour and Liberal Democrat manifestos. Labour pledges to introduce a new marine plan and improve the accountability of Scottish Water to the government as well as to monitor sewage overflows and protect water quality for water sports. Labour also says it will commission a water scarcity plan and also promote “nature-based mitigations which restore freshwater habitats and reduce the impact of flooding”. The Liberal Democrats also want to introduce a Clean Water Act to address issues with sewage overflows as well as banning the sale of wet wipes containing plastic. The Liberal Democrats also intend to introduce river catchment plans “in partnership with landowners and farmers”.
Despite being in government for 19 years, the SNP had very little to say on the importance of Scotland’s water resources – only that they will not privatise Scottish Water and that they want to explore the idea of urban waterways in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Although water policy as a separate category did not feature in the manifestos of either Reform or the Conservatives, nevertheless both parties had policies concerned more broadly with protecting Scotland’s natural environment and aiding the farming and fishing industries. The Greens situate water policy within the context of nature restoration and improving the natural environment for red squirrels and beavers, for example. The Greens are also concerned with improving water quality through the Clean Water Act to prevent chemicals leaking into our water.
Thus, although water is not a primary election issue, it remains an important one which cuts across several different issue areas in each manifesto. How the newly elected government chooses to address water policy in the future could either help or hinder the management of one of Scotland’s most important natural assets.
