Across Scotland, infrastructure is under strain. Whether it's housing delivery, transport networks, energy transition or workforce planning, the scale of challenge now facing our sector is one we can no longer afford to sidestep—or postpone any further.

We’ve all seen the headlines: multiple local authorities declaring housing emergencies, yet residential completions are down by 4%, new starts down by 11%. Social housing build is at its lowest level in nearly a decade. At the same time, strained water and drainage networks, large highways and rail schemes and a forecasted £45 billion energy spend by 2035 all demand readiness and capacity unlike anything we've known or experienced before.

And yet, what worries me most isn’t the data. It’s the inertia.

In September the UK’s last coal-fired power station near Nottingham was closed after over 140 years, marking a significant moment in our energy history. Coal, which once powered our factories, homes and transport, has been the bedrock of our industrial growth and modern economy.