Meeting of the Parliament 19 March 2025
I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss ferries in the chamber. They are crucial to the people I represent across the Highlands and Islands, so it is vital that islanders’ concerns get a proper airing.
The motion that we are debating contains sentiments that I applaud, such as the call for the Scottish Government to rethink its decision to hike fares by 10 per cent and the call for island communities and workers to be at
“the heart of decision making”.
Likewise, I welcome the acknowledgement in the Government’s amendment that islanders have been subjected to too much disruption, but I am concerned that it makes no reference to the planned fare hike, which is completely inappropriate given the current state of ferries and the fact that household finances are still recovering from a major cost of living crisis—a crisis that has hit islanders harder than most.
I also applaud some of the points that are expressed in the Tory amendment, especially the point that our island communities face an “existential” threat from historical underinvestment in ferries and harbours. As a result, those communities have been treated like second-class citizens.
One of the biggest issues faced by the island communities that I represent is the unreliability of the ferry services that they receive. I am frequently contacted by constituents about the poor communication and relentless disruption that they have to endure. Vessel faults and breakdowns prevent islanders from heading to the mainland, ferries are assigned to routes that they are not properly suited to, and entire services are cancelled at short notice because of poor management decisions.
The consequences of those failings have been severe for the people I serve. A hospitality business owner in Tiree has lost thousands of pounds because a lack of capacity has stopped them from shipping in fresh produce and has prevented tourists from getting to the island. A person on Lewis, who was trying to do the right thing for the planet by using public transport to get to work, ended up losing several hundred pounds on buses and a hotel because a technical fault with the MV Loch Seaforth meant that they could not get to the mainland. Crofters cannot get their animals off the islands as a result of last-minute cancellations.
The failings of west coast ferry services highlight the underinvestment and the complete lack of regard for the human rights of people who live on the islands. Everyone should have access to food, but ferry cancellations mean that islanders face empty shelves. Everyone should have access to healthcare, but a lack of ferry capacity means that people cannot make vital health appointments. Everyone should have freedom of movement, but the unreliability of ferry services confines people.
The Scottish Greens have worked hard to deliver ferry services that work for, rather than against, islanders. In the budget, we got the Scottish Government to expand free ferry travel to under-22s on northern isles interisland ferries, and we pushed for ferries to remain in public hands, so that they operate for the benefit of the Scottish people instead of shareholders. We also made the case for investment in all-electric ferries, and we are pleased that the Government has followed through on that.
The Government needs to ensure that the new fleet that it is procuring is delivered on time and on budget and, most of all, is of a high enough quality to meet the demands of west coast crossings. The Government also needs to ensure that the new Clyde and Hebrides ferry contract puts islanders and workers front and centre, and it must not consider raising fares until a new and improved fleet and service are up and running.
Overall, I would like the Government to put islands and rural communities first when it comes to infrastructure and public service design. If we get that right for islanders and rural communities, we will get it right for urban communities.
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