Transport Scotland's unsustainable air trips

Published on Saturday 4 September 2010 16:42

TRANSPORT Scotland officials took more than 600 short-haul domestic flights, new figures reveal.

The officials from the national transport body also travelled on international flights to South Korea, Peru, Venezuela and South Africa as well as 33 flights to Dusseldorf and 17 to Amsterdam in the past year.

The figures were obtained through Freedom of Information by the Liberal Democrats. Party transport spokeswoman Alison McInnes said: "The number of flights within mainland Britain taken by Transport Scotland is sky high.

"Given that Transport Scotland only employ 280 people, I wonder how they can take so many flights.

"This is Scotland's transport agency - the body supposed to be helping us reduce our emissions. They have produced more than 100 tonnes of carbon dioxide by flying, both at home and abroad."

Transport Scotland took 661 short-haul domestic flights in the last 12 months on the British mainland. Taking in Ireland and the islands, this rises to 731.

These flights pumped more than 60 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, according to the Lib Dems. All the flights taken by the body, including international, produced 116 tonnes.

Transport Scotland has set a target of reducing annual emissions from air journeys, particularly between Scotland and London, by 20,000kg of carbon dioxide between 2010 and 2013, a 20 per cent reduction, according to its travel plan for the period.

A Transport Scotland spokeswoman said its travel plan was the first in the UK to set targets for business and staff travel. She said: "We continue to lead the field in this regard, however we know there is more to do and that is why we are doubling our efforts.

"Our recently-published revised plan focuses on business travel and sets challenging targets for reducing emissions by 15 per cent overall by 2013 and 20 per cent for air travel. But that is just the start as we are aiming for an overall 25 per cent reduction by 2020."

But McInnes called on the Scottish Government to "get a grip" on its transport agency. She added: "Transport Scotland should be leading by example and using low carbon modes of transport like the train wherever possible.

"People will find advice from Transport Scotland hard to swallow if they know how much emissions are being produced by its own officials."