Crìoch air fàire dha tiocaidean daora?

Ach dh'fhaodadh gu bheil prlamaid is riaghaltas na h-Alba a' dol a dheanamh diofar eile dha cor na Gaidhealtachd le mar a tha iad a' feuchainn ri sceama a chuir ri chile gus prsean-adhair air Ghaidhealtachd a thoirt a nuas agus toirt air na companaidhean ruith nas trice agus ann an dighean nas freagarraiche.

C againn nach do choinnich ri daoine air Ghalltachd a bha fo ionghadh cho ainneamh is a tha pleanaichean a' frithealadh na sgre, agus am prs air a bheil iad. Barrachd na nota am mle feadhainn aca. Shaoileadh tu gun robh iad a' ruith tron M25 fo sceama Alasdair Darling gus csean a chuir air na raithidean.

Bhiodh an sceama a tha a' mhr-chuid a' moladh a' ciallachadh gum faigheadh na companaidhean-adhair taic son a bhi a' ruith nan seirbhis gun Ghaidhealtachd is dha na h-Eileanan. Ach gus am faigheadh iad an taic dh'fheumadh iad aontaidhean a ruighinn a thaobh nam pris is cho tric is a bhiodh na seirbhisean a' ruith.

Thathas a' deanamh a mach gun cosgadh an sceama mu 12m, agus gun toireadh e mu thr uidhir den sin a steach do eaconomaidh na Gaidhealtachd is nan Eilean.

Chan eil cerr air ach gu bheil muinntir na seirbhis chatharra teagmhach. Iad a' deanamh a mach gun cosgadh e barrachd na 12m agus `nach oibricheadh e.

Seadh.

Sin an fheadhainn a thuirt ruinn nach cosgadh togalach r prlamaid na h-Alba "ach" 40m, agus a leig leis an sceama sin a dhol a mach as a' chiall.

Sin an fheadhainn a bha bliadhnaichean mra a' deanamh dmeas air cor na Gaidhealtachd is nan Gaidheal. An fheadhainn a thuirt ri Sarah Boyack nach fhaodadh i leigeil le sanasan-raithid Gidhlig a bhi air a' chuir an rda air Ghaidhealtachd mus marbhadh iad a h-uile duine. An fheadhainn a dh'fheuch ri Bile na Gidhlig a dheanamh cho lag gus nach biodh cil a dh'fhiach ann. An fheadhainn a thuirt fo ths nach biodh oifigear na Gidhlig a dhth air prlamaid r faileasach na h-Alba. Sin an fheadhainn a tha m-dhenach fis leigeil leis an luchd-obrach aca a bhi air an stidheachadh mu thuath.

Sin an fheadhainn a thuirt ri Dmhnall Dewar nach gabhadh cur as dha csean Drochaid an Eilein Sgiathanaich. A thuirt gun fheumadh sinn, gun fheumadh sinn seirbhisean Chal-Mac a chuir a mach gu tagradh.

Bu chir fios a bhi aca mu dheidhinn sceamaichean nach oibrich. Ma chanas iadsan nach oibrich rud, faodadh tu a bhi an re mhath cinnteach gum bi e ceart gu ler.

Tha fios gu bheil ceistean ann mu dheidhinn ciamar a dh'oibricheas an sceama. Am bu chir dha na seirbhisean gu Sternabhagh a bhi na lib leis gu bheil trr sheirbhisean a' ruith eadar Ledhas is Glaschu, d chompanaidh a' farpais air an t-slighe a Dhun-Eideann, agus d chompanaidh is am bta air an t-seirbhis gu Inbhirnis? Nach biodh e na bu ghlice airgead a chleachdadh gus seirbhisean gu Uibhist, le, Tiriodh, agus Arcaibh is Sealltainn a bhrosnachadh an ite a dhol gu ite mar Ledhas far a bheil farpais an re mhath ag obair dhan mhr-chuid, ged nach tuig mi gu brth d a bhiodh cerr air seirbhis nas ainmich Disatharna a gach cuid Glaschu, Dun-Eideann is Inbhirnis. Chan eil na Ledhasaich frionasach mu dheidhinn a bhi ag obair anmoch oidhche Shatharna.

Ach bu chir muinntir eileanan eile a bhi frionasach mu dheidhinn cho duilich is a tha e dhaibh a bhi a' deanamh air na bailtean mra mu dheas agus a bhi a' tilleadh air an aon l, mas e sin a tha iad ag iarraidh a dheanamh. Ma tha craichean gu bhi ann gus ministearan a tha daonann ag innse dhuinne gum bu chir dhuinn a bhi a' coiseachd an ite a bhi leisg, bu chir mar sin digh a bhi ann taic a chumail ri seirbhisean-adhair gu cuid de na h-itichean as sgaipte a th'ann. Tha fios gu bheil dthchannan eile ga dheanamh agus tha iad a' faighinn as leis. Gu dearbh, tha na riaghailtean a' leigeil le dthchannn sgrean iomallach a chomharrachadh gus taic-airgid a chumail ri na seirbhisean-adhair aca.

Tha fios gu bheil cuid anns an riaghaltas a' feuchainn ri dighean eile a lorg taic a chumail. Tha cuid den bheachd gum biodh e na b'fherr airgead a chaitheamh air margaideachd is goireasan aig na puirt-adhair - coltach ris an sceama a th'ann gus seirbhisean a dthchannan cin a tharraing a dh'Alba.

Cha bhiodh anns an sin ach dth-chaitheamh airgid. Chan eil cil a dhth fiosrachaidh gus innse dhuinn gu bheil na seirbhisean ann, 'se a th'ann gu bheil iad ro dhaor is iad a' ruith ro ainneamh. Sin an trioblaid.

Thathas cuideachd a' bruidhinn mu dheidhinn an t-airgead a chleachadh gus am faigheadh eileanaich airgead air ais air an tiocaid aca gach turas a dh'fhalbhadh iad. Ach 'se an trioblaid le sin gum biodh an t-ionmhas dualtach ruith a mach ann am priobadh na sla, agus nach deanadh e cil gus luchd-turais a tharraing a dh'ionnsaidh na Gaidhealtachd. A bharrachd air an sin, cha bhiodh ann ach cead dha daoine a dhol air adhart le foill, c a bhiodh a' co-dhnadh c iad na h-eileanaich? Ach cuideachd, ma tha muinntirr Ghlaschu is Dhun-Eideann a' pigheadh an cuid chsean carson nach fhaigh iad buannachd a mach as na seirbhisean nas saoire? Chan eil e ach cothromach, agus ciallach.

'Se an t-adhbhar eile as caithreach gu bheil na taicean-airgid dha na slighean nas ciallaich seach na dighean eile, gu bheil iad a' ciallachadh gum bi an saorsa ann dha na companaidhean barrachd airgid a dheanamh ma n iad an oidhirp. Dreach mar a tha Cal-Mac a' faighinn airgid son seirbhisean a ruith agus e air fhgail aca tuilleadh airgid a dheanamh nan dighean fhin.

Tha muinntir na Gaidhealtachd is nan Eilean air a bhi ro fhada gun buannachadh a mach a leudachadh ann an siubhail. Tha ln-thde aig an sin atharrachadh, agus sin gu sgiobalta.

In translation

An end in sight for the high fares?

Who has not heard the old saying: "The only politicians which ever did us any good was the one that went down with the bottles of whisky?"

But maybe the Scottish parliament and the Executive is about to do something else which will make a big difference for good to the Highlands and Islands with their scheme to help bring down air fares to the Highlands and to have them run services more frequently and at more suitable times.

Which of us did not encounter people in the Lowlands who were shocked at how rarely planes fly to the area and also the fares which are charged? Some cost more than a pound per mile. You would think that you were driving them along the M25 under Alistair Darling's scheme to impose road-charging.

The most-commonly touted scheme is a plan which would see airlines given some subsidies in order to run services to the Highlands and Islands. And in order to get the financial support they would have to agree to deals about the fares and how often their services would run. Another possibility would see extra cash given to bring down landing charges.

It is claimed that the scheme would cost about 12m and that it would bring benefits of about three times that to the Highlands and Islands.

The only thing which it has against it is that the civil servants are dubious about the scheme and that they think that it would cost a lot more than the 12m which have been mentioned.

Yeah right.

They were the ones who told us that the new Scottish parliament building would "only" cost 40m, and who allowed the project to go out of control.

They were the ones who were years opposed to the good of the Highlands and the Gaels. The ones who told Sarah Boyack that she could not allow Gaelic road-signs to be erected in the Highlands lest they would kill us all. Those who attempted to water down the Gaelic bill. The ones who said from the very beginning that there was no need for there to be a Gaelic officer in the shiny new Scottish parliament. They are the ones who are unwilling to have civil service jobs moved to the north.

They were the ones who told Donald Dewar that he could not remove the tolls on the Skye Bridge. Who now insist, that we must, absolutely must, place the Cal-Mac routes out to competitive tender.

They should not know all about projects which will not work. If they tell you that something will not work, then it is probably an indicator that it will be just fine.

Obviously, there are questions about the fine detail of the scheme. Should the services between Stornoway really be subsidised given that there are now a large number of connections between the Lewis and Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness? There are two companies battling it out on the route to Edinburgh, and there are two airlines and a ferry service competing for custom to Inverness. Might it not be better to save the money for Stornoway and instead use more of it for services to Uist, Islay, Tiree, and Orkney and Shetland instead of using it for an island where competition seems to be working reasonably well? One thing I can never understand is the reluctance to have a service to connect Lewis to Inverness, Edinburgh, or Glasgow later on a Saturday. One thing about the people of Lewis, they don't mind working very late on Saturday.

But the people of other islands should mind very much about how difficult it is for them to travel to the cities and then get back on the same day. If we can afford ministerial cars so that those who tell the rest of us to walk all the time instead of being lazy can be ferried around, then there should also be some way of keeping air services going to some of our most isolated communities. Other countries manage to get away with it. Indeed, the rules actually allow countries to designate isolated areas so that their air routes can be subsidised to support the communities.

There are some looking for other ways to use the financial support. Some wonder whether it might be better to use the cash for marketing and for resources at the airport - something like the scheme which operates to attract foreign airlines to Scotland.

But that would be little other than a waste of money. No-one needs to be told that the services exist, the problem is how expensive they are and how seldom they operate.

There is also the idea of using the money for cash-back schemes for islanders to give them money back when they buy the tickets to cut the cost of travel for them. But that would be a very difficult scheme to administer and the money could run out quickly, and it would do nothing to attract tourists to the Highlands and Islands. It would be an invitation to fiddle the system, who would decide who deserved the cashback? And moreover, if the people of Glasgow and Edinburgh are stumping up for this through their taxes why on earth should they not receive some benefit in the form of cheaper travel to their own country? It is only sensible and fair.

The reason that the subsidy for airfares or landing charges makes more sense than the other schemes is because it would give the airlines the incentive to push on and try and make more money by attracting more passengers. It would work just as Caledonian MacBrayne receives a lump sum and is then free to make extra money through it operations.

The people of the Highlands and Islands have been too long without the benefit of the travel revolution. It is time that changed, and changed quickly.