Government need to reconsider transport policies

I have backed a petition calling on the Scottish Government to review its policies on the funding of the Bus Service Operators Grant and concessionary bus travel and to consider the re-regulation of the bus industry. I met local campaigner John Nelson who led the petition, which aims to ensure that people across Scotland are provided with affordable and reliable local bus services, and Sandy Livingston and Jim Lee who were also involved.

The petition was brought to the Scottish Parliament via the Public Petitions Committee who have referred the matter onto the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Committee for their consideration.

Scotland’s local bus and inter-city coach services are provided by private sector operators. Services are provided on a purely commercial basis, unless a local authority wishes to offer a subsidy for the operation of a socially necessary service which cannot be provided on a commercial basis. However, some areas are being let down by these providers as services are cut and fares are increased.

I am delighted so many people have signed the petition and that it is making progress through parliament, and would like to congratulate John Nelson and the other campaigners for their tireless work on this issue. The bus services in Central Scotland are inadequate and have been for a long time. We need better regulation of the service as some areas are being let down by the private market. Many residents in areas across my constituency, which has some of the lowest levels of car ownership in the country, are not able to afford expensive taxi journeys and therefore depend on adequate public transport services for a good quality of life.

Drink Driving Debate

I was glad to be able to contribute to last week’s Scottish Government debate on drink driving.

Speech at 1.01.24

Under the terms of the Scotland Act 2012, the Scottish Parliament now has the power to lower the drink drive limit from its current level of 80mg (amongst the highest in Europe) to 50mg (the level in most European countries).

As I state in my speech, this is a move I fully endorse. Cars and alcohol are a toxic combination: they should not be mixed.

However, whilst I explain my reasons for supporting the lowering of the limit, I have some doubts about the ancillary measures proposed in the Scottish Government’s consultation, many of which require the devolution of further powers.

There are a number of steps we can take right now to tackle Scotland’s problem with drink driving, and alcohol abuse generally. For example, the Scottish Government should clamp down on alcohol advertising, and afford more funding and coverage to campaigns, whether in print, on tv or online, which warn of the dangers of alcohol consumption, especially in relation to driving.

We must also ensure that there are adequate numbers of frontline police to enforce new legislation, and a robust legal system to punish those that contravene it.

Driving whilst intoxicated is a reckless and selfish act. If we are to send a clear and unequivocal message, those who are found guilty of driving under the influence of drink or drugs must be made to face the consequences of their actions.

The truth on Plains station

Tommy Morgan, Labour council candidate for Airdrie North, has kindly produced this informative leaflet for anyone requiring clarification on the Plains station proposals.

Plains Station LABOUR Flyer Front and Back sheets in PDF FORMAT

Dishonest SNP leaflets must not go unchecked

I was extremely disappointed by leaflets produced by an SNP Council candidate for Plains in North Lanarkshire.

The leaflets state that Alex Neil, Airdrie and Shotts MSP and Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment, has “secured funding [through the recently announced rail improvement fund]…to construct a station at Plains”.

This statement is premature to say the least.

The leaflet goes on to criticise North Lanarkshire Council for not applying for the funding, and to promise that “if elected” the candidate will ensure a station is built.

A genereous description of these assertions is that they are ill-informed and misleading. A couple of days after the £30 million rail improvement fund was announced, officials from North Lanarkshire Council contacted the Scottish Government to request details about the application process. Moreover, Alex Neil only recently stated that, given his ministerial commitments, he is unable to directly intervene on the issue of Plains station.

In a single leaflet, the SNP is attempting to claim credit for a non-existent station at Plains, deny responsbility for current and past failings, and lay the blame elsewhere.

I would much rather look to the facts, and the facts tell me that were it not for the decision by former SNP Transport Minister to veto the Plains proposals back in 2007, there would already be a station.

Regardless of the claims of the SNP’s spurious leaflets, Scottish Labour, along with North Lanarkshire Council, remains fully committed to building a station at Plains, and we will work together to try and make it a reality.

If they have any respect for the residents of Plains, the SNP should pulp these disingenuous leaflets.

Cut to bus grant could harm local services

Over the past few weeks, I have been struck by the number of constituents, in Central Scotland and elsewhere, who have expressed real concern about the provision of bus services within local communities.

Studies have shown that bus journey’s account for approximately 85% of all public transport journeys taken in Scotland, and that access to local bus services is especially crucial for the elderly and those on low incomes.

I recently visited a group of constituents in Airdrie whose travel opportunities are limited by irregular service along daytime routes, and scant provision of evening bus servies. They also expressed concern about recent price rises along certain routes.

That is why the decision by the SNP Government to cut the Bus Services Operators’ Grant by 20%, and to change the way in which it is calculated, is so misguided. Formerly, the grant was calculated accorded to fuel expenditure; now, following the recent rise in fuel duty and prices (average diseal prices increased by 14.7% last year), the grant will be calculated according to mileage.

In addition to this, the Scottish Government’s decision to impose a cap on the National Concessionary Travel Scheme will place further pressure on bus operators, especially given that current projections suggest that this year’s scheme will exceed the £180 million budget by around £6 million.

I and my Labour colleagues believe that the Scottish Government should be investing in the public transport infrastructure. Instead, it has chosen to reduce a grant that helps to maintain local services and prevents fares from escalating.

Sadly, it is likely to be passengers that bear the brunt of the SNP’s folly, and that is why Scottish Labour is backing the numerous campaigns that have sprung up throughout Scotland to support local bus services and condemn SNP cuts.

Join the campaign to save Airbles Station

A campaign has been launched by local councillors and members of the constituency Labour party to save Airbles station in Motherwell.

The station has been threatened with closure by transport quango, Transport Scotland.

The Scottish Government funded organisation is looking to save £280,000 and has listed 14 Scottish stations on its website for possible closure by 2014.

However, local politicions, including my Labour colleague John Pentland MSP and local councillor Michael Ross, as well as local Labour party activists, have started an online petition against the closure, and are encouraging local service users to contribute to Transport Scotland’s consultation in order to make their views known.

I am fully behind this campaign. It is crazy to consider closing down train stations at a time when we should be opening new ones. Dr Beeching did huge damage to public transport in the United Kingdom when he spearheaded the closure of so many local stations; damage that is probably irreparable. We should not be compounding his mistakes by adopting the same misguided policy.

I remain a vocal advocate of the campaign to bring a new station to Plains, and I am similarly committed to ensuring that Airbles station remains open.

To see the petition, click here. To contribute to the consultation document, click here.