§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about the criteria used by the Scottish Office in deciding the level of subsidies to shipping companies for general cargo and timber transportation; which Scottish companies are currently in receipt of these subsidies for general cargo and timber transportation; how much these subsidies have amounted to during each of the last five years for(a) general cargo and (b) timber transportation; and how much the Glenlight Shipping Company has received in respect of its transportation of timber for Caledonian Paper plc.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonEach shipping operator's tariff rebate subsidy—TRS—allocation is based on the operator's estimates of traffic to be carried within the specified period and on previous years' actual traffic carried as compared with forecasts. The companies currently operating within the TRS scheme are listed in the table. All companies within the TRS scheme are eligible to receive subsidy on both general cargo and timber transportation. It is up to each individual company to decide on a commercial basis which commodities they wish to carry. Information is not available in the form requested for subsidy disaggregated between different commodities. The total amount of TRS paid during the last five years is also listed.
Companies operating within the TRS scheme:
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- P&O Scottish Ferries
- Orcargo
- Orkney Line Ltd.
- Shetland Line Ltd.
- Dennison (Shipping) Ltd.
- Easdale Island Shipping Line
- Gardner Shipping (Scotland) Ltd.
- Glenlight Shipping Ltd.
- Hay & Company (Lerwick) Ltd.
- Roderick Cunningham (Scalpay) Ltd.
P&O and bulk shippers' tariff rebate subsidy 1989–90 to 1993–94 P&O Bulk Shippers 1989–90 4.3 1.0 1990–91 5.0 1.6 1991–92 4.2 2.0 1992–93 4.3 2.2 11993–94 6.8 3.1 1 Provision.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what contact there has been between the Scottish Office and Caledonian Paper plc concerning the recent closure of the Glenlight Shipping Company and the implications for the operation of Caledonian Paper plc; and if he will make a statement.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonGlenlight Shipping Ltd. has not closed. The company is still operating, but has taken the commercial decision to discontinue bulk shipping operations in the highlands and islands area apart from the carriage of timber. The Scottish Office is continuing to provide tariff rebate subsidy to the company on the basis of eligible cargoes carried. There has been no contact between the Scottish Office and Caledonian Paper plc regarding this matter.