HC Deb 24 March 1976 vol 908 cc385-7
7. Mr. David Steel

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will take steps to improve the co-ordination of the Scottish Transport Group, the traffic commissioners, and the local authorities in producing a cheap and efficient passenger transport service in Scotland.

Mr. Millan

A working party which I established recently has drawn up procedures to facilitate consultation between individual regional councils and the Scottish Bus Group about the provision of efficient local bus services, and these have been endorsed by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Bus Group. The traffic commissioners are an independent regulatory body and their in| elusion in these consultations would not be appropriate.

Mr. Steel

When do the Government intend to bring forward their legislation on rural transport? Will it include steps to remove the authority of the traffic commissioners which merely gums up the works?

Mr. Millan

We have promised first a transport review and a consultative document, which I hope will be published soon and which will deal with the whole of transport policy. As for rural transport, we announced certain proposals for: experiment last December. One of the experimental areas will be in Scotland. To carry the matter further, legislation would be required. I cannot put a date on it, but we want a more relaxed legislative position and then we can consider whether there are more flexible ways of dealing with some of the problems in rural areas. We are committed to that, although not to any precise way of achieving it.

Mr. Fairbairn

If the Minister is genuinely dedicated to a more flexible approach to rural transport, why did the Government vote against the Bill, of which I was a sponsor, to allow private operators to operate in rural areas in Scotland?

Mr. Millan

I am sorry to say, no doubt to the great disappointment of the hon. and learned Gentleman, that the fact that he had introduced such a Bill completely escaped my attention.

Dr. M. S. Miller

Since there seem to be so many insurmountable problems over the profitability of transport in Scotland by air, road and rail, would the Minister at least consider investigating the chances of rail transport being made free, so that the roads can be kept free of all kinds of pollution affecting them now?

Mr. Millan

I think that my hon. Friend will find that the consultative document will deal with the whole subject of finance very comprehensively. Looking at the problems as we have them at present, I cannot see that the idea of making services free would be very attractive. It would add very considerably to the taxation burden, both centrally and locally.

Mr. MacCormick

Is the Minister aware of the swingeing increases which have been imposed by the Scottish Transport Group's subsidiary, Island Ferry Services, and what do the Government intend to do about them?

Mr. Millan

Yes, I am aware of those increases. I do not consider them to be swingeing. Considering the additional costs that the group has had to bear on ferry services, I think that the increases are reasonable in all the circumstances. As the hon. Gentleman knows, the subsidies to the Scottish Transport Group for island ferry services were considerably increased by the Government only last year.

Miss Harvie Anderson

While most of the supplementary questions have dealt with the rural services, the Question itself does not specify rural services. Will the Minister accept that there is grave difficulty in the commuter areas, where expense and lack of frequency of service are resulting in an impossible position? Will he take that into account at the same time as considering the rural difficulties?

Mr. Millan

Again, the consultative document deals with the urban areas as well. I agree with the right hon. Lady that, while there are pressing and difficult problems in the rural areas, it ought not to be forgotten that very large numbers of people in the urban areas now face considerable transport problems.