Farmers and crofters in Scotland are calling on the Scottish Government to implement urgent improvements to the Clyde and Hebrides ferry services to protect their livelihoods.

In writing to Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity Jim Fairlie MSP, the National Farmers Union Scotland (NFU) has said that it is vital that Scottish Government work to tackle the transport issues that face its members across island and peninsula communities, as they continue to damage businesses.

The union says it has sent letters and correspondence to Transport Scotland following a meeting with the Minister for Transport, Fiona Hyslop MSP in October 2023, where the discussed ferry provision.

However, the union claims that they have received no reply while also  emphasising the lack of engagement with Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), which owns the ferries, ports, harbours, and infrastructure.

NFU Scotland President Martin Kennedy said: “The agricultural sector is hugely important to the economic and social viability of many island and remote communities, and like all people living and working in these areas, farmers and crofters are heavily reliant on these lifeline ferry services.

READ MORE: 

“While our members have cultivated positive and useful engagement with Caledonian Macbrayne at a local level, we have had little opportunity to engage with CMAL and Transport Scotland. We need to ensure that all organisations are fully aware of, and understand, the issues and impacts relating to the agricultural sector. 

“In the short-term, the cumulative impact of all the disruptions and restrictions means that farmers and crofters are being prevented, at a critical time of year, from reaching markets and receiving essential goods from the mainland.

“In the long-term, farmers and crofters dependent on ferries are seeking reassurance that the current dire situation will improve significantly. The increase in ferry fares announced for 2025 must come with a much-improved service.”

The union has outlined a catalogue of problems its members have encountered including;

  • Regular vessel breakdowns and further delays in the delivery of new vessels, coinciding with the introduction of the winter timetable, is causing significant disruption for members.
  • Timetabling and dry-docking decisions, made increasingly without community consultation, continue to cause issues for businesses with both island-based communities and those servicing the islands.
  • Securing advance bookings, for both commercial livestock hauliers and farmers and crofters traveling with their own livestock trailers continues to be difficult.

A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “We have undertaken significant measures and investment over time to help keep ferry travel as affordable as possible, including a fares freeze in 2023-24 in order to help people, businesses and communities at the height of the cost of living crisis, and to aid recovery from the impact of the pandemic.

""Reluctantly, we are having to raise ferry fares in the coming year by 10%, bringing fare levels back to around what they would have been had we applied the 9.1% inflationary rate in 2023-24. This will help to address some of the significant budget pressures and support the additional and significant investment in the ferry network in the coming years.

“We recognise the impact that delays and disruption have regrettably had on our island communities and this government is committed to investing in our ferry services. That is why delivering six new major vessels to serve Scotland’s ferry network by 2026 is a priority for this government. We have also started the procurement process for seven new smaller vessels as part of phase one of the Small Vessel Replacement Plan.

"We have invested more than £2 billion in our ferry services since 2007 and we have outlined plans to invest around £700 million in a five year plan to improve ferry infrastructure. We continue to work with operators and CMAL to improve resilience across our networks.”