£2 BUS FARE CAP COULD SOON BE INTRODUCED NATIONWIDE, SAY GREENS AND SNP

by Bill Heaney

Bus passengers across Scotland are saving a fortune thanks to the £2 bus fare cap introduced in the Highlands and Islands.

The cap was secured for the Highlands and Islands by the Scottish Greens through negotiations with the Scottish Government, the Holyrood parliament was told this week.

Ross Greer, the Greens’ leader, could hardly contain himself when he told MSPs: “I was pleased to meet people from across the Highlands and Islands who are now saving a fortune thanks to the £2 bus fare cap that the Scottish Greens secured through negotiations with the Scottish Government.

“For example, someone commuting from Elgin to Inverness is now saving £17 a day on that journey.”

Now that’s really good news, and even better news for commuters is that the cap could soon be extended across the whole of Scotland.

Green Party joint leader Ross Greer said: “Expanding the £2 cap nationwide was in the Green and SNP election manifestos—in our case, it was set out as a transitional step towards the provision of universal free bus travel.

“Given that school holidays are coming up, families are looking for affordable days out, and the cost of petrol is skyrocketing, expanding that cap should be a top priority for the Government.

“Does the First Minister agree with the Scottish Greens that more families should be able to enjoy £2 bus fares this summer?”

“During the election campaign, my party made it clear that our priority was to roll out the proposal, although I have to be candid with the Parliament that it will take us time to do so.

“Our priority was to roll it out across the Strathclyde transport area in the west of Scotland, and then to take the practical steps that will be necessary to implement our manifesto commitment.”

“Making bus travel cheaper is only half the picture, though. Forty years after Thatcher privatised the bus network, many communities just do not have the bus services that they need.

 “Fares have gone up, but routes have also disappeared, which leaves people isolated and holds our whole economy back.

“At the same time, a handful of private bus company owners have become obscenely rich. Some have made so much money from being bus company operators that they can afford to set fire to a pile of their cash by writing £100,000 cheques to the Scottish Labour Party.

“The Scottish Greens proposed bringing our bus services back into public ownership through a bond scheme, but the SNP’s manifesto was silent on the ownership question.

“Does the First Minister not agree that it is time to end the failed experiment of privatisation? Will he work with the Scottish Greens to bring our bus services back under public control?”

“To be serious, I am very sympathetic to Mr Greer’s points. There are a number of good examples of bus transport being in public ownership—the city of Edinburgh is a shining example, given its outstanding, high-quality bus service.

“I am full of admiration for the work that is being undertaken by Highland Council, in whose area many more services have been brought under public ownership and control.

“The legislative framework is in place to enable that to happen. We want to work with local authorities to advance such propositions, because they would be in the public interest.”

Curmudgeonly West Dunbartonshire Council would not comment on whether they supported the moves towards the bus fare cap. Even good news fails to capture their imagination.

“We can make public transport more affordable and sustainable through the steps that we propose to take with the £2 bus fare cap.”

Mr Swinney said that, along with the Deputy First Minister, Jenny Gilruth, he was looking forward to engaging with the Greens on the Government’s financial priorities.

Meanwhile, Mr Green reminded parliament that this week marks the start of Pride Month.

He said: “Pride is not just a celebration of our LGBTQ community; it is a protest. It is clear why protest is still needed. A decade ago, the United Kingdom consistently came top of the list for LGBTQ rights in Europe, yet we have fallen to 22nd place today.

“That is primarily the result of the vicious wave of transphobia that has been unleashed in recent years, but the attacks on our whole community are escalating.

“One of the many shameful stains on the UK’s record is its failure to ban the form of torture known as conversion therapy.

“The First Minister promised a ban on so-called conversion therapy in Scotland within a year of the election if the UK Government failed to introduce a bill.

“As things stand, Labour has repeatedly promised to introduce a bill but has failed to do so.

“During this Pride Month, will the First Minister take the opportunity to confirm that he will fulfil his promise to LGBTQ Scots?

“Will his programme for government include a ban on so-called conversion therapy?”

Mr Swinney told him: “First, let me associate myself with the substance of Mr Greer’s comments on his concern about the erosion of the position of members of the LGBTQ community.

“I express my solidarity with them to ensure that their rights are protected at all times and that they are asserted.

“On the question of a ban on conversion therapy, my party’s manifesto said that, first, we would embark on dialogue with the United Kingdom Government to establish its intentions and to seek a common purpose.

“Simita Kumar, the Minister for Equalities, has sought that dialogue with the United Kingdom Government. We will update the Parliament on the implications of it as they relate to the specific question that Mr Greer has put to me.”