Meeting of the Parliament 15 March 2016
Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the briefing sessions that Derek Mackay mentions. On one of the days that a briefing was offered, I was out meeting some of the businesses that had been affected by the closure. During the other event, I was holding a surgery for constituents, speaking to them about the chaos that the Forth road bridge closure had caused.
Many Fife businesses are still paying the price of the closure. The extra traffic in my constituency has left the roads concerned in a poor state, riddled with cracks and potholes galore. Fife Council—which is already faced with huge cuts, thanks to the decisions of Tory and Scottish National Party ministers—now faces a huge bill simply for playing its part in keeping Scotland moving last December.
I ask the minister to come out and look at the state of the roads—in Kincardine, Culross, Torryburn and Oakley and along the A985—to see the damage first hand, and, indeed, to look at the Kincardine bridge, which the local community in Kincardine tell me is also in dire need of structural improvements. I hope that the Scottish Government will be willing to act to support Fife Council and Fife communities in funding the repairs that are urgently needed.
Moving on to the inquiry, I am disappointed and concerned that much of the evidence that was received is not adequately reflected in the report. The fact remains that the chaos that was faced by commuters, residents and businesses in Fife could likely have been avoided had the SNP Government chosen to invest and not to cut.