Greens demand Tories come clean over data centre donations
The Scottish Greens have called on the Scottish Conservatives to come clean over donations from individuals with financial interests in major hyperscale data centre developments, including whether any conditions were attached to the money.
The call follows an investigation by The Ferret which found that CX Tech, the company behind the proposed £16.5 billion Chapelcross data centre in Dumfries and Galloway, sits within a chain of companies controlled by Conservative Party treasurer and millionaire donor Graham Edwards.
These revelations come less than a month after the Scottish Conservatives refused to back the Scottish Greens’ call for a moratorium on new hyperscale data centre applications, on the basis that it risked deterring investment from Scotland.
The Scottish Greens have argued that the pause was needed to allow communities and planning authorities to properly scrutinise the rapid growth of hyperscale developments and their cumulative impact on energy use, land, water and the environment.
Scottish Greens South Scotland MSP Laura Moodie said:
“The Scottish Conservatives need to come clean about the money they have received from people with direct financial interests in Scotland’s biggest and most controversial data centre proposals.
“Only weeks ago, the Tories refused to support our party’s call for a moratorium on new hyperscale data centres, falsely claiming it would deter investment from Scotland. We now know that people connected to these developments have also been donating significant sums of money to the Conservatives.
“Perhaps the only investment they were really worried about deterring was investment in their own party coffers.
“At Chapelcross, communities are facing a development on a scale Scotland has never seen before. At full capacity, the data centre could consume more electricity annually than 2 million homes.
“People living near these developments deserve political parties working in their interests, not those of wealthy donors and developers.
“The Scottish Greens have been clear from the start that these massive developments must not go ahead without proper consideration of their cumulative impact on Scotland’s energy system, land, water and climate targets, and clear national rules to ensure they are genuinely green.
“The Scottish Conservatives must come clean about these donations and show that wealthy developers are not being given a louder voice than local communities.”