Fair funding for internal ferries in the Northern Isles

The leaders of the Councils in Orkney and Shetland are asking Ministers and local MSPs to support their call for fair funding for inter-island ferry services in the two communities.

The two local authorities are seeking additional financial support from the Scottish Government for the internal ferry services that operate within Orkney and Shetland.

Both Councils have to provide substantial funding to keep local ferry services running, on top of the current contribution they receive from the Government.

They argue that this is an unfair burden which affects their ability to fund other vital Council services.

Orkney Islands Council Convener Steven Heddle and Shetland Islands Council Leader Gary Robinson make the call for additional funding in a letter sent to Finance Secretary Derek Mackay, Minister for Transport and Islands Humza Yousaf, Scottish Liberal Democrats Leader Willie Rennie and the MSPs for Orkney and Shetland, Liam McArthur and Tavish Scott.

Councillor Heddle said: “Our inter-island ferry services are quite literally a lifeline for the isles they serve and so this is a matter of great importance for our communities.

“A strong case for fair funding has been made by the two Councils individually and through our joint work as part of the Our Islands Our Future campaign.

“We feel considerable progress has been made and we are now asking Ministers to put an end to the disproportionate burden we carry in providing internal ferry services for our communities.

"We are asking our MSPs and their party colleagues to support us in this when the Scottish Government’s budget for 2017-18 is debated next month, as ultimately it will benefit everybody living in Orkney and Shetland.”

Councillor Robinson said: “As this is a burden that most other Scottish authorities do not have to bear, an early announcement on funding for our inter-island transport services would go a long way towards helping us face the ongoing reduction in public sector funding.

“Our ferry services are essential to our remoter communities, and it’s important that the Scottish Government now makes good on its stated commitment to support our island economies.”

In its response to the Our Islands Our Future campaign (Empowering Scotland’s Island Communities) published in June 2014, the Scottish Government said it “understands the significant financial challenges that can fall on individual local authorities, and is committed to the principle of fair funding in the provision of ferries and ferries infrastructure”.

The Government added that it recognised that the “provision of transport services should not place a disproportionate financial burden on any Council … with particular reference to the revenue and ferry replacement costs of the internal ferry services of Orkney and Shetland, and commits to meaningful negotiation now to conclude this issue”.