Scottish Minister Blast's 'Basket Case' Policies

Tavish Scott frustrated by EC rules and policies

In an uncharacteristic outburst Scottish Transport Minister Tavish Scott has delivered a broadside against the European Commission.

In an interview with Holyrood Magazine he branded the EC's Transport Policy 'a basket case'.

Last week he was critical of the process of tendering out the Clyde and Hebridean ferry services that has been branded 'farcical' by observers, saying the Scottish Executive had been 'forced' into the process by the EC.

He told the magazine that they, the Executive, were in a 'ludicrous' situation where the west coast's ferry services had to be put out to tender because of the Commission's rules, but they ' do not force the Paris Metro to bring market forces to bear there'

Despite a lengthy, and costly, process the number of companies in the running to operate the State-owned ferry routes now stands at one, the present operator Caledonian MacBrayne, or rather, Calmac Ferries Ltd, a company spun off as part of re-stucturing to allow competition and tendering to take place. Glasgow-based V.Ships UK dropped out of the running saying that the package they were to tender on was too restrictive to operate a commercially viable service.

Tavish Scott said that European policy was 'inconsistent' and 'nonsense' and added "I think European transport policy for the European Commission is a basket case."