Meeting of the Parliament 04 March 2026 [Draft]
I do not have any time; I am going to continue.
Yet the issues that respondents raised were the same in 2023 as those that Transport Scotland reported in 2025.
I first raised the seasonal fares policy in 2021. The scrapping of peak seasonal fares for islanders on the northern isles ferry service will be a relief for island residents, who rely on the lifeline service all year round. The unfair fare structure became untenable after peak rail fares were scrapped. The Scottish Government, however, did not seriously engage on the issue until recently, and it has not escaped the notice of islanders that the announcement comes just before an election.
There are many other on-going issues with the northern isles ferry service that the Government could address if it were so minded. I have long called for a new rolling system of bookings. Cliff-edge dates, beyond which bookings are closed, make forward planning difficult, while at the same time islanders are advised by the operator to book well in advance. Passengers struggle to secure bookings for cabins on the dates on which they need to travel, and even more so if they need to take their cars.
The complexities of transporting time-sensitive freight exports from Shetland constrain local businesses and their ability to expand. High-value produce from Shetland such as seafood and livestock needs to get to market on time. Transport haulage companies in Shetland have told me of the investment and time that are required to navigate the limitations of freight capacity and meet customer demand. Work needs to be done now to procure extra tonnage to address that while the tender process is under way for the new freight flex vessels, as it will be years before those vessels are in service.
Meanwhile, despite my raising the issue repeatedly, Transport Scotland seems to be caught out each autumn by the requirements of the annual livestock sales, with little forward planning evident.