News / Ferry cuts decision delayed
SHETLAND Islands Council has postponed its decision on cutting the inter island ferry service budget for one month.
Councillors were to make a decision on £3 million savings on 5 December, but have said they need more time to digest the volume of information that has come out of two rounds of consultation with affected communities.
The review also needs to include traffic modeling and socio economic studies of the impact of ferry cuts on the islands and the wider community being carried out by consultants.
On Thursday the council said that given the level of concern about the speed of the process and the need for councillors to fully understand the consequences of their decision, it will now wait until a special meeting in January.
SIC environment and transport committee chairman Allan Wishart: “I think this is a prudent decision.
“While the continued uncertainty about the future of the service is regrettable, our communities have engaged really well with the latest consultation and we owe it to them to make sure their responses are thoroughly analysed before the review can be finalised.
“I recognise that postponing a debate and final decision puts significant pressure on those officers who are working towards setting next year’s budgets.
“However it is critical that both the community and councillors are content that every aspect of this issue has been investigated and considered before any final decisions are made.
“I’d like to thank everyone who has taken part in the consultation, and those officers who’ve worked so hard on this project.”
Infrastructure services director Phil Crossland added his thanks to the communities for their engagement with the consultation.
“Many suggestions from the earlier stages of consultation have already helped shape the process,” he said.
“However, it is clear that the speed of this review has caused concern among members and the wider public, and the people and businesses using our ferries have to be confident that this process is not rushed.
“This is one of a number of reviews which will inform the future shape of this council, and it is vitally important that enough time is given to considering the wealth of data which has been gathered.”
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