MSP challenges government over haulage RET 3/1/12
Highlands and Islands Conservative MSP Jamie McGrigor has challenged Transport Minister Keith Brown to support island hauliers after the withdrawal of commercial RET on island ferries.
A draft report into the economic impact of haulage costs indicates that though some local hauliers and businesses kept the savings many others passed them on to the community.
This was reflected in the Western Isles being cushioned from rising costs and experiencing stabilised freight charges over the four years of the RET trial.
The draft report -
Jamie McGrigor said: “This report is to be welcomed and entirely vindicates the clearly expressed views of local hauliers and businesspeople in the Western Isles, Coll and Tiree that the introduction of RET on commercial vehicles had had a positive impact on the local economy and had been passed on by hauliers to other sectors.
“The claims of Scottish Government Ministers that the benefits of RET had not been passed on by hauliers have been shown to be completely inaccurate.”
The MSP added: “The Transport Minister should now apologise to my constituents in the Western Isles and Coll and Tiree for instigating a policy change which has caused real harm to the economies of these fragile communities.
“He also needs to set out urgently how he will respond to the report’s findings and what action he will now take to support hard pressed local hauliers and businesses.”