Government ministers have admitted they have no idea how reliable Scotland’s bus services are, in answers to questions from Patrick Harvie, Green MSP for Glasgow.

Bus users have been inundating Mr Harvie’s Better Buses website with complaints about the poor reliability of services in Scotland’s biggest city.

In answers to Parliamentary Questions tabled by the Green MSP, Transport Minister Keith Brown admits data on bus punctuality is not gathered by the Government and no data is broken down by bus operator to enable comparisons in performance to be made. [1]

This is despite Scotland having a grandly-titled “traffic commissioner” who has a target of 95% of buses to be no more than 5 minutes late, or 1 minute early.

By contrast, in England and Wales, consumer watchdog Passenger Focus has carried out wide scale surveys of bus passengers, comparing performances of different companies and in different areas. Patrick Harvie has tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament calling on the Scottish Government to fund a similar survey in Scotland. [2]

Mr Harvie said:

“It is essential the profit-driven private operators who have a strangehold on Glasgow’s buses yet who receive public subsidy are forced to be less tardy. It’s appalling the government has no way of telling us whether targets are being met, nor which companies are the worst offenders.

“This is yet another example of SNP ministers treating anyone who uses a bus as a second class citizen. The experiences being submitted to the Better Buses website suggest the traffic commissioner’s target is pie in the sky.

“I suggest the minister finds some spare change in his enormous road-building budget to fund a survey so we can start tackling this important issue.”

Notes

[1] Patrick Harvie’s questions are available here: www.scottish.parliament.uk

[2] Patrick Harvie’s motion is as follows:
“That the Parliament acknowledges the frustration of bus passengers when services do not run to time; notes that the Scottish Government does not gather information relating to bus punctuality, nor data that differentiates between different bus companies; notes that Passenger Focus has a statutory remit for bus users in England, outside London, and provides quality research data on buses by city, region and bus company; further notes that in Wales, where it has no statutory remit, Passenger Focus has undertaken a bus survey for the Welsh Assembly Government using the same methodology; and calls on the Scottish Government to commission and fully fund a Scotland-wide bus survey using the Passenger Focus methodology that will enable Scotland’s passengers to compare the performance of their bus companies with those in other places and to act as a bench mark from which improvements can be measured.”

In a surprise announcement, Caroline Lucas has indicated that she will not put herself forward for re-election as Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales later this year. Like the Scottish Green Party, such positions in GPEW are open to re-election regularly, and Caroline feels that the time is right to allow new faces to come forward in a leadership capacity, while she continues her work as Green MP for Brighton Pavilion.

Here is the statement GPEW issued tonight:

Caroline Lucas Opens Door to New Green Party Leaders

In September 2012, Caroline Lucas MP will reach the end of her second term as national Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, and has announced today that she will not be seeking re-election for another two-year term, in order to broaden opportunities for the range of talent in the Party and to raise the profiles of others aspiring to election.  

Caroline Lucas said: “I’m hugely honoured to have served as the first Leader of the Green Party and I’m proud that during the four years of my term, we’ve moved Green politics forward to a higher level, with the Party by far the most influential it has ever been. We’ve seen significant breakthroughs in winning our first seat at Westminster and gaining our first ever local council in Brighton and Hove. These were followed by further breakthroughs onto new Councils in the recent local elections, which were among the most successful we’ve ever had, as well as establishing ourselves as the third party, ahead of the LibDems, in the elections for London Mayor.  

“I look forward to continuing to do all I can in my very demanding role as the MP for Brighton Pavilion, representing my constituents and defending them against the Coalition Government’s disastrous economic policies and its refusal to accept its environmental and social responsibilities. I will also be able to dedicate even more of my work to the political frontline, putting the Green case for change in Parliament and in all circles of national political debate.”

Cllr Darren Johnson, London Assembly Member, said: “Caroline has made a huge impact in her time as Green Party Leader and has helped shift Green politics from the margins to the mainstream of British political life. She will be an extremely hard act to follow but this is an ideal time to allow new talent to come forward.”  

Jenny Jones, London Assembly Member and recent Green Mayoral Candidate said: “The Green Party has made some massive breakthroughs in the past two years, since having Caroline as our Leader, in Parliament, in Brighton and most recently in London, where we are now the third party behind the Conservatives and Labour. Caroline’s decision not to seek re-election at this point is entirely in keeping with Green principles: it’s a strong move, allowing other talented people to come through and to take the Green Party even further forward. She has set a superb example of how to lead. Whoever is elected in her place has a tough act to follow.”  

Nominations for leadership candidates are now open within the Party and will close towards the end of June. The new Leader (or Co-leaders) will take up the two year post in early September. No nominations have yet been received.  

Caroline Lucas added: “We’re lucky to have a wealth of capability and experience in our Party. Now feels like the right time to step aside, to allow more of that ability to come forward and help the party to grow. I offer my very best wishes to the next Leader, whoever they may be.”  

ENDS  

NOTES FOR EDITORS The roles of Leader and Deputy Leader were established by the Green Party in 2008 to provide a public face and a strong voice for Green politics and policies. Both roles have a term of two years and Caroline Lucas MP, the Party’s first Leader, will have served for two consecutive terms.

You can see my opening speech if you skip forward to 00:31:28.

And here are the motions and amendments:

S4M-02639 Elaine Murray: Transport—

That the Parliament notes the concerns expressed by bus service operators, passengers and the trade unions that represent bus workers regarding the impact of the Scottish Government’s changes to the Bus Service Operators Grant; notes that the Scottish Government’s decision to cut the grant by 17% in 2012-13 and to revise the formula has, along with the underfunding of the concessionary travel scheme and high fuel costs, resulted in fare increases and service reductions across the country; recognises that this has also contributed to the decision by First Scotland East to reduce dramatically its services in Lothian and Midlothian, with the potential loss of around 200 jobs; believes that the Scottish Government has failed to listen to the concerns of operators, bus service workers and passengers; urges ministers to take action to address the immediate problems of the industry, including urgently revisiting the 17% cut in the Bus Service Operators Grant, and instead begin proper negotiations with operators to ensure that the scheme is sustained at a level that does not threaten services, jobs and high fare increases, and believes that new legislation is required to enable the regulation of bus services in Scotland to ensure sustainable and reliable bus services throughout the country.

S4M-02639.3 Keith Brown: Transport—
As an amendment to motion S4M-02639 in the name of Elaine Murray (Transport), leave out from first “concerns” to end and insert:

“total funding of nearly £250 million per year provided to Scotland’s buses as part of total Scottish Government support for public transport of £1.181 billion; welcomes the Scottish Government’s continuing commitment to the national concessionary travel scheme and Bus Service Operators Grant; welcomes the inclusion in these schemes of demand-responsive transport services available to the general public, such as dial-a-bus; welcomes the Scottish Government’s additional funding of up to £40 million for Glasgow Fastlink, £6 million for low-carbon buses and up to £10 million for Halbeath Park and Ride; welcomes the Scottish Government’s commitment to innovative solutions such as hard-shoulder running on the M77 and the new £3 million Bus Investment Fund; welcomes its ongoing financial support for passenger-focussed organisations such as Bus Users UK, the Community Transport Association and Traveline Scotland; notes the role of local government in supporting local bus services, previously through the Bus Route Development Grant, which is now incorporated in the general funding of local government; recognises that the per capita subsidy for bus services in Scotland is significantly higher than in England; welcomes the constructive dialogue initiated in the Bus Stakeholder Group and in the Lothians over the future of bus services; notes that First Bus states that fuel prices and economic conditions over a number of years are contributing to its increased costs; notes that the price of diesel has increased by 57% over the last five years and the price of petrol by 55%; further notes that fuel duty in the UK is the highest in the EU, and therefore calls on the UK Government to ease the pressure on all forms of transport by introducing a fuel duty regulator to stabilise fuel costs for all forms of transport and to scrap plans to increase fuel duty in August.”

S4M-02639.1 Jim Hume: Transport—
As an amendment to motion S4M-02639 in the name of Elaine Murray (Transport), leave out from “has, along with the underfunding” to end and insert:

“was arrived at without any formal consultation with bus operators or users, with bus operators given inadequate time to adjust their businesses to the formula change and has, along with the underfunding of the concessionary travel scheme and high fuel costs, resulted in fare increases and service reductions across the country; recognises that this has also contributed to the decision by First Scotland East to reduce dramatically its services in Lothian and Midlothian, with the potential loss of around 200 jobs; believes that the Scottish Government has failed to listen to the concerns of operators, bus service workers and passengers, and urges ministers to take action to address the immediate problems of the industry, undertake proper consultation with operators and users and use extra money available to Scotland, following the UK Budget, to prioritise and safeguard bus services and guard against high fare increases.”

S4M-02639.4 Patrick Harvie: Transport—
As an amendment to motion S4M-02639 in the name of Elaine Murray (Transport), leave out from second “notes” to end and insert:

“believes that successive Scottish administrations have failed both to provide the level of financial support necessary to maintain high quality and affordable bus transport in all communities and to adequately regulate the industry to ensure value for taxpayers’ money; recognises that bus fares in many parts of Scotland are now less affordable than train fares and even taxis in some circumstances; considers that fuel prices are likely to continue to rise and that this will create a greater need for high quality and affordable public transport as an alternative to private car use; notes the lack of any statutory body protecting the interests of bus passengers; believes that bus users’ voices are not being adequately heard in the debate on bus transport; encourages bus passengers to publish their views through the http://betterbuses.org website; calls on the Scottish Government to reverse the cut in the Bus Service Operators Grant, ensure that overall public spending on bus services is adequate to protect services, jobs and fares and extend the remit of Passenger Focus in Scotland to bus users, and believes that new legislation is required to enable the regulation of bus services in Scotland to ensure sustainable and reliable bus services throughout the country.”

Scotland has a huge renewable energy potential but will be missing a trick if it allows all of the benefit to be captured by a handful of multinational companies. That’s the warning from Green MSP Patrick Harvie, giving the keynote speech today (17 April) at the Renewable UK International Small and Medium Wind Conference in Glasgow. It is the UK’s first conference of its kind, with over 300 people expected to attend.

Last month Greens used valuable debate time in the Scottish Parliament to argue the case for greater involvement of the public and third sectors in securing the benefits of small and medium scale renewable energy. It resulted in a promise from the energy minister to make his officials available for talks on the issue.

Patrick Harvie said: “Households, small businesses, farms, and the public sector could have a huge role to play in developing small scale renewables which help meet our climate change targets and help share the economic benefits. Scotland’s councils should be leading partners, using public land and buildings to generate clean energy which will bring in much needed funds to protect public services. 

“Let’s not fall into the trap of thinking that renewable energy is only ever an industrial-scale enterprise. Scotland could have a truly Green future if we use the transformation of our energy system to benefit the common good, not just business interests. Small is still beautiful and the role of smaller scale wind power should not be underestimated.”

Following a profile of Dr Hansen, I took part in a studio discussion with Chris Goodall.

Commuters and other passengers in Glasgow are being given the chance to improve the city’s bus services by tweeting their opinions.

Patrick Harvie, Green MSP for Glasgow, today (26 Mar) launched an interactive campaign for better buses. Members of the public are invited to become Better Buses Inspectors by giving their views on a special website – www.betterbuses.org – or via the Twitter account @betterbuses.

Mr Harvie said:

“Half of Glasgow’s households don’t have access to a car so it’s essential we get a better bus service in and around the city. Motorists have loud and powerful lobby groups – I want to give a voice to Glasgow’s bus users.

“Neither the private companies running the buses nor the Scottish Government are inspecting the level of service, so I’m urging passengers to become Better Buses Inspectors and share their views. Buses should be affordable and accessible, and shaped by people’s needs rather than company profits.”

Mr Harvie and a team of volunteers have been visiting bus stations and stops around Glasgow to get passengers’ views. Many people have expressed frustration at the frequency, punctuality and condition of the buses. Poor weekend and evening services are also top concerns.

The comments received will inform the next stage of the Better Buses campaign which will seek action from the bus companies and the government.

(Ends)

Notes for newsdesks
- Deregulation means that government, councils and transport authorities have no leverage over where buses go, how much they charge, and how often they go. – Anyone can start their own bus service and schedule their vehicles to leave 5 minutes before the bus that runs already. Bus companies that operate purely for their own benefit in this way are eligible for all the same public subsidies.
- A bus company can unilaterally decide to cut a service completely, or cut evening / weekend services which are unprofitable. There is no obligation for them to consult, or to take notice of complaints and responses.
- Bus companies do not need to prove how much profit they are making on a service before asking for a subsidy on that service.
- If you have a complaint about the frequency of buses, or changes to the route of a bus, or that you do not have a bus service, or about prices rises, there is nowhere to take that complaint beyond the bus company itself.
- 48.8% of households in Glasgow have no access to a car. This is the highest percentage of all the local authorities in Scotland.

Scottish Greens have expressed serious concern that US property tycoon Donald Trump is set to fund a campaign in the Scottish council elections.

In an interview in Holyrood magazine the chair of protest group Communities Against Turbines Scotland talks of plans to use substantial funding from Trump. This overseas donation would go towards a “massive campaign” against Scottish council candidates who have supported wind power developments.

Scottish Greens have referred the matter to the Electoral Commission for investigation.

Green MSP Patrick Harvie said:

“It’s bad enough that Mr Trump has thrown a hissy fit about the chance that he might be able to see turbines from his golf resort, and has threatened to abuse the planning and legal systems to undermine Scotland’s energy industry. But the possibility that a foreign billionaire will seek to use his wealth to influence the local elections is outrageous.

“This is not America, and our political process is not for sale at any price.”

UPDATE: 3:50pm
I’ve just had two phone calls about this. The first was from Mr George Sorial, who will be familair to those who have followed the Menie Estate saga as executive vice-president of the Trump Organisation. By turns nice and nasty (one minute telling me I’ve “crossed over the line” and the next inviting me to Menie for a personal tour of the golf course) he certainly seemed rattled by the suggestion that there could be rules breached. He did give me a clear assurance that this won’t happen; which leaves me wondering whether Ms Crosthwaite of CATS will find her hopes for a well funded political campaign dashed. I think Mr Sorial and I ended the call by agreeing that everyone involved has the right of free speech, which is of course reassuring.
The other call was from the Electoral Commission, to let me know the spending limits for non-party campaigns in the local elections, as outlined in their guidance, and to confirm that any breaches of the rules would be a matter for the police. The matter of judgement, about whether to accept a foreign donation for the purpose of a clearly domestic policy campaign, may end up being one for CATS to reach. No doubt we’ll have the chance to discuss this with them face to face at the committee inquiry next month.

Scottish Greens today claimed the UK Budget will undermine Scotland’s renewable energy ambitions.

George Osborne’s measures including further cuts in corporation tax for big business, incentives to extract more fossil fuels and no support for Scotland’s massive renewable energy potential.

Green MSP Patrick Harvie said:

“Scotland has the lion’s share of renewable energy resource in the UK, but the Chancellor has shown himself stuck on the dirty fuels of the last century. By investing in Scotland’s renewable energy potential rather than old fashioned fossil fuels, the UK government could have given our economy the shot in the arm it needs. Tax breaks for big oil and gas corporations do nothing for the environment or equality – Scotland needs this budget like a hole in the head.

“Aside from the failure to support green energy, this budget is the clearest sign yet from this government that the rich can expect to get richer at the expense of the least well off. The millionaire Chancellor has offered up a true blue budget, and the LibDems have rushed to support it.”

A couple of weeks ago I received a letter from First Glasgow, the operator of most of Glasgow’s buses, highlighting implications of the SNP’s cut to the Bus Service Operators Grant. Those implications could include cuts to services as well as fare increases.

I immediately wrote back, asking how they would consult passengers about all of this. I’m deeply opposed to the funding cut which has been imposed, and I know that as that grant goes down something will have to give at local level. But the people who rely on Glasgow’s buses every day of the week should be listened to; our priorities shold be taken into account before any decisions are made.

So I was deeply disappointed to receive today another letter explaining that the decisions have been made and the cuts to services will go ahead.

Eight services will be scrapped altogether – the The 2, 25, 29, 91, 17, 213A, 207 and 209. Many more will be degraded.

This will lead to anger across the city, and rightly so. Most households in Glasgow don’t have access to a car, and huge numbers of us rely on buses every day of our lives. The case for a better bus grant is strong of course, but there’s also an overwhelming case for regulating this industry and treating buses as a service instead of just a business run for profit.