With pressure mounting from people who live on Uist and Barra, the comhairle is to again consider the financial implications for bringing back inter-island air services. It is to look at whether the discount scheme for individuals would be helped from public bodies such as the health board and the comhairle paying full fares with a view to a viable restoration of inter-island air services.
“This would be part of the ongoing work of making internal flights more affordable to the public and more fairly share the cost of subsidising these flights across the public sector,” the comhairle said after today’s transportation committee. There are discussions continuing with Loganair for more Barra to Glasgow flights as the community wants. The inter-island air discount will be thrashed out again at next week’s meeting of the Policy and Resources Committee.
The SNP said their councillors John A Maciver and Kenny Macleod had put the reinstatement of the Barra link of the inter-island air services firmly back on the table. John A said: “I am delighted that the committee accepted my amendment to ask the chief executive to submit a report to the Comhairle detailing funding options for the re-establishment of the inter-islands air services.
“This will mean that councillors may have to make difficult budgetary decisions. Had they agreed to the budget proposals set out by the SNP group last February, the services wouldn’t have been cut in the first place.”
