Islands Bill consultation and transport at top of agenda

A forum will be set up to consider strategic transport issues affecting Scotland’s islands, as agreed today, during the eighth meeting of the Islands Areas Ministerial Working Group held in Orkney today.

The Islands Transport Forum, established by islands minister Derek Mackay, will meet biannually and will include representatives from local authorities with island communities.

It is intended that the forum would deal with internal and external ferry, air, and other transport services upon which each of the island communities so heavily depend on for social cohesion and sustainable economic activity and growth.

The Islands Transport Forum will consider opportunities and difficulties, including:

• Improving collaboration between Transport Scotland, RTPs and Islands Councils
• Ensuring clarity with regard to roles, responsibilities and obligations in the context of the CHFS and NIFS Public Service Contracts
• Establishing a process that fully accounts for island-specific views
• Ensuring efficient and effective lines of communication between all key stakeholders to facilitate improved consultation and engagement, sharing of information, cascading of decisions and escalation of issues between and to the most appropriate levels

This was also the first opportunity for the Island Areas Ministerial Working Group to discuss in detail the planned Islands Bill consultation. The consultation announced yesterday by the First Minister will be published this summer.

Speaking on behalf of the three island authorities, Orkney Islands Council Convener Steven Heddle said: “At today’s meeting we raised a range of transport issues, matters of fundamental importance to the people we serve. As island communities, we need air and ferry links that people can depend on and afford to use.

“This is vital for the wellbeing of our communities and our discussions focused on how we can ensure Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles are served by transport links that are sustainable long term and less costly in future than they are at present.”

Councillor Heddle added: “Our talks today also looked at how we take forward the Scottish Government’s commitment to devolve to the islands the revenue from Crown Estate assets in our coastal waters. This income stream should directly benefit people in the communities where it is generated. We feel the best way to achieve this is for our local authorities to have responsibility for the management of these assets.”