David Maddox: The trap is set
Labour have sent me a copy of their motion for the transport debate on Thursday. As mentioned in my Inside Holyrood column on Monday, this is aimed at primarily embarrassing the Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead (pictured right).
In his capacity as the MSP for Moray, Mr Lochhead is a longstanding campaigner for the Elgin bypass, which his party promised in opposition would be built. But his neighbour, Banff and Buchan MSP Stewart Stevenson, the Transport Minister, rather let the side down by not including the bypass in the list of projects for the next 20 years.
Mr Lochhead has remained as a minister, but is now apparently campaigning against his own government's transport policy. The motion in the name of Des McNulty, Labour's transport spokesman, is designed to force him to choose between being a minister and betraying his constituents or opposing the government and having to resign as a minister. A similar trap has been laid for Children's Minister Adam Ingram over the Maybole bypass.
Only time will tell if it works.
Here is the motion:
Des McNulty Labour, (Clydebank and Milngavie) (pictured left): That the Parliament notes that the Strategic Transport Projects Review lacks detail on timescales and does not commit the Scottish Government to deliver a programme of expenditure for the vast majority of the projects identified; and accordingly notes the concern of communities along the length of the A82, A77, A9 and A96 that no indication has been given as to when their needs for road improvements will be addressed; and in particular notes the disappointment of people in Elgin, Inverness and Maybole who were led to believe by the SNP prior to the 2007 election that their by-pass schemes would be given priority by an SNP Government, reminds Ministers of the principle of collective responsibility and the need to ensure that communities are not misled about the Scottish Government’s intentions.
In his capacity as the MSP for Moray, Mr Lochhead is a longstanding campaigner for the Elgin bypass, which his party promised in opposition would be built. But his neighbour, Banff and Buchan MSP Stewart Stevenson, the Transport Minister, rather let the side down by not including the bypass in the list of projects for the next 20 years.
Mr Lochhead has remained as a minister, but is now apparently campaigning against his own government's transport policy. The motion in the name of Des McNulty, Labour's transport spokesman, is designed to force him to choose between being a minister and betraying his constituents or opposing the government and having to resign as a minister. A similar trap has been laid for Children's Minister Adam Ingram over the Maybole bypass.
Only time will tell if it works.
Here is the motion:
Des McNulty Labour, (Clydebank and Milngavie) (pictured left): That the Parliament notes that the Strategic Transport Projects Review lacks detail on timescales and does not commit the Scottish Government to deliver a programme of expenditure for the vast majority of the projects identified; and accordingly notes the concern of communities along the length of the A82, A77, A9 and A96 that no indication has been given as to when their needs for road improvements will be addressed; and in particular notes the disappointment of people in Elgin, Inverness and Maybole who were led to believe by the SNP prior to the 2007 election that their by-pass schemes would be given priority by an SNP Government, reminds Ministers of the principle of collective responsibility and the need to ensure that communities are not misled about the Scottish Government’s intentions.
Labels: David Maddox, Des McNulty, Richard Lochhead, transport strategy.
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