Edinburgh Airport Rail Link

Question Time — Scottish Executive — General Questions – in the Scottish Parliament at 11:41 am on 13 September 2007.

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Photo of Alison McInnes Alison McInnes Liberal Democrat 11:41, 13 September 2007

To ask the Scottish Executive when it will report back to the Parliament on its work on continuing to progress the Edinburgh airport rail link project. (S3O-602)

Photo of Stewart Stevenson Stewart Stevenson Scottish National Party

As promised, we will report back to Parliament at the end of the month on the review of governance issues identified in the Audit Scotland report.

Photo of Alison McInnes Alison McInnes Liberal Democrat

I thank the minister for his answer. I remind the minister of two points. First, the terms of the motion on EARL that the Parliament agreed on 27 June were:

"That the Parliament ... further calls on the Scottish Government to continue to progress the EARL project by resolving the governance issues identified by the Auditor General".

Secondly, the response of the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth to that motion being passed was:

"I also put on record that the Government will pursue the terms of the resolution in relation to the Edinburgh airport rail link."—[Official Report, 27 June 2007; c 1192.]

I ask the minister to explain how suspending work on the EARL project, as well as his comment to the Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee on Tuesday that suspending work on EARL was

"the way to protect the public purse and ensure that we do not allow the project to go ahead",—[Official Report, Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee, 11 September 2007; c 26.]

square with those two earlier points? Is it not the case that the minister has already decided to defy the will of Parliament and to ignore the promises of his cabinet secretary?

Photo of Stewart Stevenson Stewart Stevenson Scottish National Party

I assure the member that we continue to engage with the governance issues. I refer her to the answer that I gave to Tavish Scott on 6 September, which refers to meetings that John Swinney has had with BAA and Network Rail. Those form part of a continuing programme of engagement with this important issue, which precisely addresses the governance issues that were contained in the motion that was passed by the Parliament.

Photo of Des McNulty Des McNulty Labour

Would the minister not accept that it is a strange definition of "continue to progress" to suspend the work that is being done on a project? Would he not accept that it is his responsibility, as Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, not just to bring the interested parties and stakeholders together but to tell them to get on with the work and to progress the project, which was agreed to by Parliament?

Photo of Stewart Stevenson Stewart Stevenson Scottish National Party

Mr McNulty might not have been listening. We are firmly engaged in addressing the governance issues that the Auditor General for Scotland identified. By the end of the month, we will present our response to what we have found and on what we can do now.