Which way next as MSPs split on party lines about A9 dualling inquiry?
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A call for a parliamentary inquiry emerged swiftly from its own benches after the Scottish Government’s announcement that it would be “unachievable” to dual the A9 by 2025.
Inverness and Nairn MSP Fergus Ewing was livid when transport secretary Jenny Gilruth revealed the deadline would be missed and the Moy to Tomatin section re-tendered.
But perhaps the straw that broke the camel’s back was when she said that Highlanders would have to wait until the Autumn to be told the new timescale for the delivery of the programme.
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After the outpouring of public anger on the issue due to what Mr Ewing described as “simply a betrayal of the Highlands” we asked Highland MSPs what they would do for their constituents to deliver a safer, dualled A9.
Some like Kate Forbes were restricted in what they could say due to cabinet responsibility, others were asked but did not respond directly to the four identical questions we put to them:
Douglas Ross, Scottish Conservative leader and Highlands and Islands MSP
“This latest delay from the SNP-Green government is a total betrayal of our communities in the Highlands. Jenny Gilruth tried in vain to use every flimsy excuse she could think of for not meeting the 2025 deadline, but the buck stops with her and the Scottish Government.
“Successive SNP transport ministers have miserably failed when it comes to upgrading and ultimately dualling and any so-called progress has moved at a snail’s pace.
“The complete failure to have the A9 dualled on time is only going to put more lives at risk. A dozen people lost their lives last year on that stretch and it is likely more will do this year and in future ones.
“Alongside my Scottish Conservative colleagues who represent communities along the A9, we will continue to demand answers from Jenny Gilruth. A revised timetable must be brought forward as a matter of urgency, rather than later in the year. Users of the A9 and Highland communities have been let down at every turn and many rightly feel the SNP will never fully dual this key route.
"This also has a knock-on effect on the A96 being dualled and it looks like the SNP will betray the communities who have been promised a dualled road between Inverness and Aberdeen as well."
Kate Forbes, Finance Secretary and SNP Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch MSP
“2022 was a terrible year on the A9 and serves as a painful reminder on why dualling cannot come quickly enough.
“I have written to the Transport Minister urging her to set out a realistic timetable for the remainder of the dualling programme as quickly as possible, but also asking what Transport Scotland can do to make up for lost time.”
Maree Todd, Health Minister and SNP Caithness, Sutherland and Ross MSP
“The A9 is a route that local businesses and communities in my constituency rely on and with a devastating rise in fatalities on the road in recent months, I can appreciate the strength of feeling following the Transport Minister’s announcement this week.
“However, along with wider immediate measures to help support a reduction in accidents along the route, I was pleased to hear the Minister also acknowledge the ongoing challenges north of Inverness. The Minister confirmed that she is in talks with BEAR Scotland and Transport Scotland representatives about improvements, including junction closures.
“The Transport Minister has outlined in detail the reasons behind the delays so I don’t think an inquiry is needed. All focus and resources should be spent on the urgent retendering process and completion of the overall project.”
“Any life lost on our roads is one too many, so it is right that improved safety measures on the route are implemented as a matter of priority.
“The police have been very clear that the causation factors for the recent accidents have been wide ranging and unpredictable, so whilst dualling will help, there is no simple or single solution to prevent them.
“The A9 dualling programme is a massive infrastructure investment. It is a project that was repeatedly kicked into the long grass by preceding governments, in both parliaments, but the SNP Government committed to it. Although much is still to be done, the Scottish Government will deliver on its promise to our Highland communities.
“As the First Minister stated in Parliament, design work is progressing on the rest of the programme, with ministerial decisions to complete the statutory process confirmed for seven of the remaining eight schemes.
“I am in regular contact with the Transport Minister concerning the A9 and I am due to meet with her shortly to receive a further update. I will use this opportunity to relay the views that have been raised with me locally but also to receive assurances around realistic timetables.”
Edward Mountain, Conservative Highlands and Islands MSP
“This is not just a smack in the face for Highlanders, this broken SNP promise risks the lives of all those using one of Scotland’s most dangerous roads. Given the rate of accidents on the A9 in the last twelve months, the SNP’s disinterest in dualling this main trunk road is negligent.
“I support calls for an inquiry into the failures to dual the A9 as Highlanders deserve to know why the SNP have abandoned the project as originally promised. This inquiry must also ask whether Highland SNP politicians, such as Fergus Ewing, really did enough while in the Scottish Government or whether they let the A9 programme slip without challenging their Ministerial colleagues.
“Whether it’s the A9 or A96, the Highlands is not getting its fair share of investment that it absolutely deserves and needs. Whether it’s SNP’s preference for spending on their pet projects in the Central Belt or following the anti-road agenda of their Green coalition partners, the Highlands is being left out and let down.
“Safety on the A9 is not going to improve drastically unless the dualling works are completed in full - doing nothing is simply not an option. I will be reminding the SNP of their responsibilities to deliver the A9 upgrades urgently at every opportunity I get and I will not rest until this project is finally delivered.”
Emma Roddick, SNP Highlands and Islands MSP
“It will be hard for locals to believe that the project will go ahead in the face of another delay, and I’m clear that the Scottish Government needs to convince them with action, not just words.
“The A9 is a road I am very familiar with, I’ve known people who have died in accidents, and I understand well folks’ concerns that further delays will lead to further deaths. It is imperative that a contract for the Tomatin to Moy section is awarded as soon as possible and we see real progress on dualling and improving safety on the A9.
“I am not sure what an inquiry would add as we know exactly what happened here: there was only one bid and the Scottish Government decided the price of it was too high to justify to the taxpayer.
“I don’t like that this is how it went, but I’m clear on what happened, and my concern would be that an inquiry would just lengthen the delay for the people of the Highlands and add to the cost when we know cost is such a major concern, without the findings telling us anything we don’t already know.
“Highlanders have long deserved this investment. I am happy that there’s a new train station out at Dalcross, but the fact is that lack of a station there wasn’t causing tragedies and deaths. There is more than transport links at stake here, this is an issue of safety, and we’ve been waiting an unjustified amount of time for what everyone agreed over a decade back are necessary improvements. That is why I directly asked the Minister to assure the people of the Highlands that the Scottish Government is committed to them, not just this project, because both will be hard for people to believe right now.
“I have a meeting scheduled with the Minister for Transport and I will keep reminding her of the urgency of this work. This is an issue where almost all Highland MSPs are united in disappointment and anger, and I hope that our combined pressure will force sooner action.”
Donald Cameron, SNP Highlands and Islands MSP
“It’s a complete disgrace that the SNP has failed so miserably in delivering this pledge.
“The party has been in government for almost 16 years, and at any point in that time could have made this an infrastructure priority.
“Instead, little action has been taken and that inaction will put lives at risk.
“It’s yet another example of a nationalist government obsessed with the Central Belt which leaves rural communities behind on a regular basis.
“Does anyone really think if this was a road between Glasgow and Edinburgh that it would have been left neglected for so long?
“A parliamentary inquiry into this may well be in order at some point.
“But it’s important to recognise that people across the Highlands just want this sorted, they don’t want more delays and more laborious administrative processes”.
Ariane Burgess, Greens Highlands and Islands MSP
“Road safety has to be our top priority on the A9. Improving dangerous junctions and reducing speeds is what will cut accidents and save lives, making a real difference to people living and travelling in the Highlands.
“This is the action local communities are telling us they want, and it needs to be prioritised ahead of dualling the whole length of the road.”
