| LABOUR GET IT WRONG ON GARL |
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Labour were wrong to try to force the controversial Glasgow Airport Rail Link (GARL) back onto the Scottish Budget, claims Councillor Kenny MacLaren (SNP – Paisley North West). Faced with a massive budget cut from the London Labour Government, the SNP Scottish Government announced that the GARL project would be cancelled. The Scottish Government has a fixed budget, so if the GARL decision was to be reversed then something else would have to be cut from the Scottish budget to make way for GARL. Cllr MacLaren said, “Despite all their moaning, Labour have failed time after time to say what they would cut to reinstate GARL – would it be hospitals, or cutting other essential public services?” The controversial GARL project would see a rail line built across the football pitches at the Racecourse (St James Park) destroying a major part of Paisley’s heritage. The current GARL project would see only about 8 passengers per train, removing very little traffic from the M8 while requiring an ongoing subsidy of £3million per year. Cllr MacLaren continued, “Most people in Paisley realise that the controversial GARL project was quite simply the wrong line, in the wrong place for the wrong price. It’s only purpose was to move people quickly out of Renfrewshire – providing little benefit to this area.” However, the upgrade of the rail link from Paisley to Glasgow will still continue, allowing for increased trains on this line, providing a boost to Renfrewshire. Cllr MacLaren added, “Labour’s protest over GARL is pure hypocrisy – they will not admit that other essential public services will have to be cut to keep this vanity rail project. The fictitious 1,300 jobs are simply unproven – what jobs are they, where will they be? According to some reports these jobs could only be created over 20 or more years – about 65 jobs per year at the cost of £3million each year! “Labour should come clean on how they would pay for GARL. They have already said use accelerated spending on this (despite previously claiming this should only be used for housing) – yet the London Labour Government won’t permit this expenditure. Labour have also called for increases in council tax and scrapping of free school meals to pay for GARL – apparently unaware of the difference between capital and revenue spending! “I have no objections in principle to a decent rail link to the airport but it has to be the right route. It has to be one which genuinely promotes public transport, by taking traffic off the M8 – possibly a route which goes through Renfrew and Braehead. However the current controversial GARL project is wrong and its demise is welcome.” NOTES The SNP Scottish Government cancelled the GARL proposal in the draft budget for 2010-11 due to a squeeze on capital budgets and rising costs. The SG faces a direct £129 million reduction in capital budget this year and every year as a result of cuts to health capital spend in England. The project was initially costed at £170 million and is now £370 million. This includes £70 million to move BAA’s fuel depot at the airport. |
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