Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school -
7. Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to the Royal Mail regarding its decision to withdraw five postbus services from the north and west Highlands. (S3O-6288)
The Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change (Stewart Stevenson):
At a recent meeting with Royal Mail Group, the Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism took the opportunity to express the Scottish Government's concerns about the withdrawal of the Highland postbus services. The provision of local bus services is, of course, a matter for commercial bus operators and local authorities. However, the Scottish Government would urge partners to work together to ensure that those vital services continue.
Jamie Stone: I put on the record my gratitude to Jim Mather for saying what he said to the Royal Mail.
Will the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change instruct his officials to point out to the Royal Mail the absolute undesirability of discontinuing those services and the potential, in respect of tourism, of not only retaining the services but building on them in the future, for tourists and for our pensioners, who desperately need the postbus so that they can access vital services?
Stewart Stevenson: I associate myself with Mr Stone's remarks and concur with them.
The whole future of Royal Mail is being debated. I note that 130 Labour members of the United Kingdom Parliament have indicated their opposition to the UK Government's plans. In that context, I hope that the UK Government takes a much more supportive attitude to the Royal Mail that enables it to support, through postbus services and otherwise, the needs of rural and urban Scotland.
The Presiding Officer (Alex Fergusson): I ask Peter Peacock to be brief.
Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): Can the minister confirm that the Scottish Government has powers under transport policies to offer support to the Post Office's network of postbuses? Is he considering doing that in this instance?
The Presiding Officer: I ask the minister to be equally brief, if possible.
Stewart Stevenson: We are supporting local authorities by appointing someone from the Scottish Government to work directly with them on bus services. I hope that that will be one means by which we have greater and more effective engagement with local authorities and bus service providers such as the Royal Mail.
