Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee

Meeting date: Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Official Report 434KB pdf

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Community Transport

We move on to item 2. Jayne Baxter will give a report on the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Committee's inquiry on community transport. I refer members to paper RACCE/S4/13/22/3, which Jayne will speak to—without reading it all out.

I could speak at length on the topic, but I will not do that today.

In approaching the task, I was mindful that my remit was to ensure that rural issues and perspectives were reflected in the inquiry. My report confirms the points that I made to Maureen Watt, who is the convener of the ICI Committee, that community transport and other forms of transport play an important role in rural communities. I made the points to her that it is mainly older people and people with disabilities who use community transport, that how we support people to access health, education and leisure facilities in rural communities is a challenge, and that the issue relates not only to health or older people but to the community as a whole. The convener had no difficulty with taking on board those points.

Based on experience, I have formed the view that there is scope for increased co-ordination and partnership working at local level—where it can best be organised—with local authorities and health boards. There are many examples in which information technology has been used creatively and effectively to support that. However, none of that will happen by magic or if partnerships are just left to evolve. There is scope for leadership at local government, community planning or Government level. I hope that the inquiry is used as an opportunity to provide that leadership and strategic direction.

Claudia Beamish reminded me this morning that Age Scotland has been campaigning for CT operators to have access to the concessionary fares budget. Although that campaign is on-going, I did not refer to it in my report because I was not sure what the committee’s view on that would be, so I did not feel that I had a remit to comment. However, the issue is probably covered under the paragraph in my letter to Maureen Watt that refers to third sector operators looking for available funding. I am happy for us to specify the campaign, should members want to do so. I did not do that because we had not discussed the matter.

Do members have any comments?

That was the exact point that I was going to make. I have visited, thanks to Age Scotland, many community transport projects in South Scotland. The fact that community transport is often in places where public transport is not available means that there are more rural people relying on it and older people who use it do not receive any help in the form of concessionary fares. I would welcome the campaign being specified in the report or, at the very least, for the issue to be considered. The minister has responded on the matter in the past, but obviously nothing has happened.

I do not disagree. I did not include the reference because we have not discussed the matter.

Absolutely.

Bearing it in mind that we will be able to review the ICI Committee’s report when it is published, does anyone else have any comments?

I endorse the approach. I am sure that all of us who have rural constituencies and discuss such matters with our community transport people are very aware of the campaign’s call and have sympathy with it. I fully appreciate that there are major cost consequences, but I hope that the matter will be covered in the report and that Parliament will be able to discuss it.

Would it be useful for us to have a meeting to consider the ICI Committee report from our perspective, so that we can make points in any debate and help to move the process forward?

Members indicated agreement.

I am a substitute on the Health and Sport Committee. I was present when it took evidence on the inquiry. It was interesting to hear the range of opinions in the room. It was a useful session.

When is the report due to be published?

It is to be published in June. I do not know the exact date.

I believe that the report will be published at the end of next week. That gives us an opportunity to discuss the report informally, or whatever, before the debate.

That would be useful.

We will need to look at the report relatively early in next year’s work programme.

That sounds good. I understand how health spending relates to the subject. I think that the way in which the national health service contributes might well be part of the thinking of the 2020 vision for NHS. That might be another funding source under contemplation.

12:00

The biggest risk to community transport is that it seen only in one box. It must be flexible and operate on a number of different fronts. That is the route to sustainability.

Good. I thank Jayne for her report. It is clearly part of our job to look at the matter and we have an opportunity to take forward the issues once we see the report.

Our next meeting will be tomorrow, 20 June, when the committee has an evidence session with Janez Potocnik, the European Commissioner for the Environment. The following week, on 26 June, the committee will hold its last meeting before the summer recess, at which we will take evidence on land reform from the land reform review group’s chair, Dr Alison Elliot, and agree a draft report on the Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Bill, if required. We will also discuss the committee’s future work programme. We look forward to all that.

12:01 Meeting continued in private until 12:40.