Kintyre Economy

Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at 5:16 pm on 25 November 1999.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of George Lyon George Lyon Liberal Democrat 5:16, 25 November 1999

As all the members exit, I must say how nice it is to play to a packed house. I welcome the opportunity to bring the problems facing the Kintyre peninsula to the attention of this Parliament, if not all the parliamentarians.

Many problems face a peninsula such as Kintyre. It is far from markets—Campbeltown is 150 miles from the central belt. It suffers from the problems of high transport costs that have been exacerbated in recent years by the fuel price escalator. We welcome the decision to shelve the increases in the fuel price escalator, but the damage has been done. The area has suffered from a depression in its traditional industries that has caused much financial hardship.