Business bosses urge rethink on scrappage of Glasgow Airport Rail Link

Published on Monday 23 November 2009 14:11

BUSINESS leaders today urged the Scottish Government to rethink plans to scrap an airport rail link, insisting the scheme was both affordable and desirable.

• A visualization of part of the project

The heads of six leading organisations have written to Finance Secretary John Swinney to express their "deep disappointment" at his decision not to proceed with the Glasgow Airport Rail Link (GARL).

The project was expected to create jobs for 1,300 people, however the SNP said axing it will save the Scottish Government 175.7 million.

But today business leaders claimed the rail link had "been cancelled only as a result of the Scottish Government's priorities lying elsewhere and ministers' decisions not to use the full range of funding options".

Iain McMillan of CBI Scotland, Andy Willox of the Federation of Small Businesses Scotland, David Watt of the Institute of Directors Scotland, Liz Cameron of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, Lesley Sawyers of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry and Owen Kelly of Scottish Financial Enterprise, have all signed the letter to Mr Swinney.

In it they offer to meet the Finance Secretary to discuss possible ways forward, adding: "In our view, the GARL project is not only desirable but affordable."

Mr McMillan, the director of CBI Scotland, said: "The Scottish business community was extremely supportive of the GARL project. It would provide a fast, direct public transport link between Glasgow Airport and the centre of the city, ease congestion and improve Glasgow's and Scotland's international connectivity.

"It would also provide a much needed boost to the construction sector and create jobs during these tough economic times. We are very disappointed with the Scottish Government's decision to axe GARL."

Ms Cameron, the chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, insisted: "In our view, the GARL project could be affordable."

She added: "Whilst we appreciate that the Scottish Government cannot invest funds it doesn't have, we believe we must raise our vision and look more closely at other funding options.

"This decision needs to be reconsidered and we have offered to sit down with government and other stakeholders to examine ways to take this forward."

The letter from the six stated they did "not accept that there are insurmountable financial reasons for its cancellation".

It added: "The Scottish Government has known for a considerable period about the more stringent times ahead for the devolved public finances, and the possibility of GARL's cancellation was never stated to be in prospect."

And they urged Mr Swinney: "We do hope that you will take our concerns seriously and seek to reintroduce GARL into the Government's spending plans in the draft budget for 2010-11."

However Mr Swinney has described the GARL project as "desirable but not essential".

Earlier this month he told Holyrood's Finance Committee: "The Government's preference is not to take forward the Glasgow Airport Rail Link and I certainly am not considering the possibility of reinstating that project."

Labour leader Iain Gray claimed the backing from Scotland's six leading business organisations for GARL was "a defining moment for the SNP over their commitment to backing economic recovery and jobs in Scotland".

Mr Gray added: "Labour has insisted John Swinney reinstates GARL and I welcome the backing today of Scotland's six leading business organisation. Their support for GARL is a damning indictment of John Swinney's decision and SNP policy.

"The Finance Secretary and Alex Salmond now have the choice of whether or not they reshape the budget to support jobs and the economy."

The Labour leader insisted the project would be "a vital boost to our transport infrastructure" with "enormous" benefits to business.

And he claimed the decision to scrap it was a "political decision not a financial one".

However a Scottish Government spokesman said budget cuts imposed by Westminster meant GARL was "simply unaffordable".

He said: "The reality is that for the first time since devolution the Scottish Government is facing a real terms cut in the fixed budget available to us from the UK Government.

"It is now simply unaffordable to commit to GARL in the face of these Westminster-imposed cuts, when vital capital projects across Scotland, such as the M74 completion, M80 upgrade, Forth replacement crossing, Aberdeen western peripheral route, improvements to the A9, schools programme, Glasgow's National Indoor Sports Arena and the new Southern General Hospital, must be allocated the capital they need to go ahead."

The spokesman also stressed: "The draft budget is focused on promoting economic recovery and protecting frontline services – in the face of the UK Government's 500 million cut to Scotland's budget – and our economic recovery plan is supporting some 15,000 jobs.

"This Government has put in place a whole raft of positive business policies including slashing rates for tens of thousands of small businesses, and increasing investment for apprentices, measures supported by Scotland's leading business organisations."