Scotland’s budget 2026-27: reductions to capital spending of bodies with responsibility for Scotland’s natural environment

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Amid welcome news on the continued and significantly increased funding for the Nature Restoration Fund, the publication of the Scottish Government’s budget for 2026-2027 (13th January 2026) raises concerns about core funding of statutory organisations. More broadly, we are concerned by potential cuts to capital spending in environmental budget lines at precisely the time that urgent investment is needed.   

We present the following with the caveats that (1) the final budget for this year will not be known until the end because some allocations are still to be made, and (2) it is hard to tease out project funding allocations versus the core costs and get a true overall picture. Some of this confusion reflects the new convention for presenting previous years’ budget figures. Apparent changes may therefore not be precisely what they seem as what is presented is a full year of allocations, including in-year allocations of peatland restoration funds and NRF. So, for the National Parks for example their 26/27 draft Grant in Aid (GIA) does not include these allocations, as they have not been agreed yet. 

  • NatureScot sees funding of £64.5m (2026/27) compared to £68.2m in the 2025-26 budget¹. 
  • Forestry and Land Scotland — the operator/land manager for Scotland’s national forests and land — sees a total budget allocation of £17.8 million (from £29.8 m in 2025-26 and £37.5m in 2024-2025)².  
  • By contrast, the budget for Scottish Forestry, the regulator for all forestry in Scotland, sees a slight increase overall to 2026-27 to £87.7 million³.   
  • National Park Authorities are allocated £24m (2026-27), compared with £28.1m (2025/26) and £30.5m (2024/25). 
  • The Marine Directorate remains the same as the preceding year’s budget (£79.3 in both 2026-27 and 2025-26); substantially less than £92.8 in 2024-25.  

Cuts to core costs have significant implications for the delivery of key strategies, such as the Strategic Framework for Biodiversity which encompasses the Biodiversity Strategy and its first Delivery Plan for 2024 to 2030, but also for meeting the forthcoming Natural Environment Act. Our primary concern is the impact of these cuts on NatureScot’s expertise in both biodiversity (especially specialist roles) and monitoring capability. 

In good news, support for Nature Restoration, much of which delivered by NatureScot and National Park Authorities, looks to have leapt from £7.5m in 25/26 to £26.1m in 26/27 (248% increase). The spending review had predicted £93 million for the Nature Restoration Fund though this is, of course, subject to election results, budget planning, and other factors.   

We also note an apparent increase in funding for peatland restoration, including £28.5m to restore 10,000 hectares of peatland in 2026-27, up from £26.9m in 2024/25, which is broadly in line with inflation. Whether this will be enough to deliver the ambitious 10% growth in peatland restoration that is required every year up to 2030 remains to be seen. It is likely that private investment will be required to fill the funding gap.   

The Soil Association Scotland has welcomed the announcement of £1.3m in funding for skills in sustainable and regenerative farming, which they say appears to be the Scottish Government delivering on the recommendations of the Land Based Learning Review.  

[1] The budget for NatureScot has been £78.1m in 2024-2025, but in subsequent years capital spending has decreased while funding allocated to project spend has gradually increased. 

[2] This represents both resource and capital spend (Resource budget: £16.2 m, Capital budget: £1.6 m — a particularly sharp drop in capital funding compared with prior years £12.9 m and £19.5 m). By contrast, Scottish Forestry’s budget increases overall in 2026-27 to £87.7 million, up from £83.3 m in 2025-26 and £69.7m in 2024-2025).  

[3] Scottish Forestry’s budget was £83.3 m in 2025-26 and £69.7m in 2024-2025.