Meeting of the Parliament 02 November 2022
I notice that the minister did not answer my question about whether the Greens have a veto on SNP policy. She is not denying the claim that was made.
As I said, I understand that the group was concerned that the minister told them that the Greens’ partnership with the SNP may hinder the SNP’s efforts to progress the matter. I am not aware that such meetings are secret meetings, Presiding Officer.
Earlier, I listed the factors that should be considered in determining priorities for infrastructure investment. One factor that really should not be present for the SNP when taking a decision is whether the Greens like it. People deserve clarity on the Scottish Government’s position on roads investment. We need to know from the SNP whether the Greens have a veto over its roads policy.
People also deserve clarity from the Green party on its position when it comes to votes on roads investment. When we last debated roads in this Parliament almost a year ago, the Greens attacked my party, which believes that money needs to be spent on upgrading key routes. The Scottish Government’s amendment spells out in black and white that more than £400 million has been spent on dualling the A9 to date—more than £400 million has been allocated in budgets that the Greens have voted for. That begs the question: if the Greens are against spending money on roads, why do they keep backing budgets in which money will be spent on roads?
Of course Scottish Labour acknowledges the challenges that we face when it comes to the climate emergency. We must do more to encourage less car travel and to help people on to public transport. That is the subject of our amendment, and I hope that it is an issue on which we can all agree.
However, regrettably, we have seen our public transport system decline under this Government. I have said it before and I will say it again: public transport in Scotland is, frankly, a joke, and there does not seem to be much ambition on show from the Government to address the issue.
We have seen rail fares hiked and 250 rail services a day cut compared with the pre-pandemic timetable. Local councils are still waiting for additional powers and funding from the Government so that they can bring buses—which use roads too, of course—back under public control. Meanwhile, private bus companies continue to fail passengers with skyrocketing fares and cuts to socially necessary routes. Cities such as Manchester and Liverpool are bringing buses back under public control and capping fares at £2. We need to see that action in Scottish cities such as Glasgow, Perth, Inverness and Aberdeen, because we will not get people out of their cars and on to public transport until we have a public transport system that is affordable, accessible and reliable.
There is no better example of how disconnected our communities are than that of one of the areas that we have been talking about today. The BBC journalist Douglas Fraser documented his recent trip by bus from Inverness to Aberdeen, a journey that took five hours, including having to change buses at Broxden interchange station outside Perth. I understand that there is a direct Stagecoach service between Inverness and Aberdeen, but it is not much better, as it takes a staggering four hours and 15 minutes to travel along the A96 from Inverness to Aberdeen. It is a 104-mile journey, which means that people are travelling at an average speed of just 24 miles per hour between those two cities. If we want to reduce traffic on the A96, we also need to consider how to improve bus and other public transport links between those two cities.
We need major and urgent transport infrastructure investment in the areas that we have discussed today and across other parts of Scotland, including investment in roads, so that we can support building local economies, better connect our communities and take the action that is necessary to address issues around safety, which people have been demanding for many years.
I move amendment S6M-06520.1, to insert at end
“, and further calls on the Scottish Government to urgently publish the final Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR) 2 Report and a clear Delivery Plan for active travel, bus, ferry and rail infrastructure projects, including investment in roads across Scotland that has due regard to road safety, journey times, economic and community development and climate impact, and clear actions to reverse the decline in public transport, which has seen significant cuts to both rail and bus services in Scotland.”
16:56Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.