This in from Andrew Turner’s office, in their own words. Ed
Andrew Turner, the Island’s MP, has warned that the future of Island Line is in the balance following the news this week that the majority of Government departments, including the Department for Transport (DfT), must find savings of between 25% and 40% over the next five years.
£20bn of cuts
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt. Hon. George Osborne MP announced plans to cut £20bn from the cost of Government as part of the £37bn savings to be made over the course of this Parliament.
The 2015 Spending Review, entitled ‘A Country that Lives Within its Means’ makes clear that devolution within England is a key priority and is explicit that the Government will continue to explore innovation and reform in public services to deliver value for money for taxpayers.
Reducing costs
The focus is on efficiency; modernising and delivering better public services whilst reducing costs. Paragraph 4.7 of the Spending Review document sets out;
‘The government will undertake a full review of capital spending plans to identify the areas of spending that will achieve the best economic returns while delivering on the commitment to invest £100bn in infrastructure by the end of the Parliament.’
Mr Turner said:
“This is no surprise to anybody. Balancing the books of the country during this Parliament was a key part of the Conservative manifesto. Island Line is very clearly at risk. In May last year I attended a briefing from South West Trains (SWT) at which it was made clear to around 30 stakeholders (including the Council, Wightlink, Hovertravel and the Community Rail Partnership) that a sustainable long-term strategy was needed before any further investment could be contemplated. To keep Island Line running up to 2019 would take about £40m, including repairs to Ryde Pier at an estimated cost of £8m. New rolling stock would also be required. SWT pointed out even then that it would be easier to close Island Line and replace it with bus services, but they recognised that the Council wanted to keep it running.
“That was why I encouraged the Council to open a dialogue with the Government about how Island Line could be retained. The Government have been very supportive and there have been two meetings with DfT Ministers, but it appears the Council has made little progress. The expert task-force which would be able to consider future options for Island Line has not even been set up yet. If the Island is to get a fair share of the very substantial infrastructure money available the Council needs to signal their willingness to consider proposals that meet the requirements set out in the Spending Review and do so very quickly.
“Those people pretending there is no option other than to keep Island Line are living in cloud- cuckoo land. Putting their heads in the sand and ignoring what the Government is so clearly saying is not going to achieve anything.
“The Council will be asked why the Government should continue a £3m annual subsidy to a loss-making enterprise in dire need of substantial investment. If they are unwilling even to explore different ways of delivering the service they are in trouble. In my opinion simply saying ‘We want things to stay the same’ will not be good enough. Even if they could somehow convince the Government to continue with the ongoing subsidy it doesn’t address the need for substantial capital investment and Island Line would continue to deteriorate before our eyes.
“I have done my very best to open lines of communication and make it clear that there are ways forward for Island Line that will have the support of Government, but the Council must now urgently engage in pursuing options that meet the strict criteria set out in the spending review. Discussions about the future of Island Line have been going on for well over a year, with little apparent progress and now Ministers will be setting out plans on how to make the necessary savings in a matter of weeks. Planning for local transport is devolved to the Council, as the local Transport Authority. I have given them all the support and help I can to ensure that Island Line can continue to serve the Island, but after this week’s announcement they need to step up to the mark very quickly.”
