Lib Dems’ plan to prevent ferry fiasco ever happening again

The SNP Government has failed ferry users. Alan Reid warned them 16 years ago that if they didn’t start building new ferries then, the existing ferries would become too old and break down regularly. The SNP didn’t take his advice and ferry users have suffered as a result.

Alan Reid spoke in favour of the plan at the Scottish Liberal Democrat Conference in Glasgow today.

The Lib Dem plan is

• A new Ferries Bill within the first year of the next Scottish Parliament which guarantees that island and peninsula communities are served by a reliable ferry network.

• New legal requirements to replace ageing vessels and produce a rolling 30-year strategy for ferries and port infrastructure, so no community is ever left without a viable lifeline service.

• Restructuring the governance arrangements of Scotland’s ferries and ferry ports, making them independent of government and putting community voices at their heart.

Alan Reid says, “Argyll & Bute has suffered terribly from the ferry fiasco. This Lib Dem plan will make sure it cannot happen again.”