South Scotland MSP Brian Whittle has written to the First Minister after hearing that Transport Secretary Michael Matheson had snubbed an invite from the A77 Action Group to attend a conference on roads in the South West.
The Action Group, working with the Dual the A75 Campaign are organising a day-long conference in Stranraer, where the two roads meet, to give local residents and businesses who rely on the road the chance to air their concerns and highlight how important the routes are to the area’s economy. Conference organisers had invited newly appointed Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity, Michael Matheson MSP, to attend the conference, hear from the public and then close the conference explaining the Scottish Government’s position on improvements to South Scotland’s transport network. But instead of taking them up on the offer, the minister’s staff sent a four sentence reply saying he already had a full diary for the day.
Now MSP Brian, who has been working closely with the A77 Action Group, supporting them to lodge a formal petition in the Scottish Parliament, has written a scathing letter to the First Minister, criticising Matheson’s decision and calling for a u-turn.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“This is a pathetic response from Michael Matheson. The Scottish Government’s record of investment in the South West’s roads is abysmal, but instead of taking action to deal with it and engaging with local residents, it looks like the Transport Minister is running scared.
After his predecessor Humza Yousaf met with the campaign groups, there was little actual action by the Government. I’d hoped Michael Matheson might take this issue more seriously and show more willingness to engage, but it apparently he feels he’s got better things to do.
The First Minister has just created this new ‘Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity’ cabinet post and now one of the first actions of the first person in the job is to give two local campaign groups the brush off. The A77 and A75 campaigns have put a lot of work into this event and they deserve to have someone Scottish Government there to hear what’s said and make their position clear. That’s why I’ve written to Nicola Sturgeon asking her to make sure Michael Matheson or another suitable minister is in attendance.”
The MSP closes his letter to the First Minister by saying:
“I have no doubt the conference will go ahead even without a member of the Scottish Government if need be. And I’m sure their absence will speak volumes to those attending the conference and the wider public in the South West.”
