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From the Isle of Wight County Press last week:
Joe Robertson MP says regulating Isle of Wight ferries is the ‘absolute minimum’ and has pledged to continue to work across party lines after Prime Minister Andy Burnham asked him to bring a cross-Solent travel proposal to the Commons. The Isle of Wight East MP said it was “hugely positive” that the Prime Minister was willing to consider regulating Island ferries, calling the cross-party moment a “real opportunity” to work together.
Will they, we wonder, look north to see if they can learn lessons from the Scottish Government’s ownership of CalMac?
I can hear the opposition parties spluttering with indignation but here’s one reason why the islanders there might think it a demn good idea?
Travelling to Scotland’s West Coast islands with Calmac typically costs between £0.20 to £0.70 per nautical mile. For example, Ardrossan to Brodick one way, 19nm, 55 min, for a foot passenger – £5-101 Similarly subsidised, the Northern Isles pay the same rate.
Isle of Wight with Wightlink typically costs £1.50 to £2.50 per nm. For example, Plymouth to Fishbourne, one-way for a foot passenger, 10nm – £14-£22. 2 Twice the rate!
Channel Isles – £1.50 to £3+ per nm, Jersey to Guernsey 30nm, one-way foot passenger £32 to £50 .3 Three times the rate!
The Isle of Wight is a popular destination for mainland retirees at more than twice the level pro rata felt in Scotland.
Sources:
- https://ferrygogo.co.uk/scotland/isle-of-arran/
- https://www.wightlink.co.uk/tickets
- https://www.condorferries.co.uk/ferry-routes-ports/ferries-to-guernsey/jersey-to-guernsey-ferry
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Talking of Ferries is that not what you also get in Dover ?
So in a sneaky way for me to introduce a comment via O/T and also to reintroduce a comment that I made on another post on TUS.
The other comment I made on TUS was about an article on the BBC website, with the BBC reporting that when the masked men (thugs) all dressed in black descended on Dover at the weekend (in an organised thugathon) the BBC stated that “no arrests were made”
Well I saw this online today and immediately went to the article via the BBC website.
It was a BBC article from September 2021 with a headline:
“Port of Dover: Arrests made as Insulate Britain blocks port”.
The article stated this:
“Thirty nine people have been arrested after climate activists blocked Dover port, causing queues of vehicles attempting to cross the Channel“
“Insulate Britain, which has brought chaos on the M25 five times in the past fortnight, said more than 40 people had gathered“. (so not hundreds then like on Saturday).
“The Kent port – Europe’s busiest ferry terminal – said passengers should take extra time for their journeys”
“The main protest began at 08:20 BST and was cleared by police two hours later” (wow that’s a far far shorter time than the thug organised thugathon on Saturday in Dover ).
“Kent Police said the protest caused “traffic disruption in Dover”, with queues forming on the A20 and the A2 approaching the port”
“All those detained on Friday were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and obstructing a highway, the force said”.
“Police said all those arrested remained in custody on Friday afternoon, when roads were again clear”.
(So the Thugs at the weekend at the same place, Dover port, who were doing the same thing but who were not arrested by the same Kent police force , as seemingly they were not considered to also be causing “traffic disruption in Dover” and also they were not arrested “on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and obstructing a highway“).
So do neither of these ‘laws’ exist in Kent any more ?
Apparently back then the the former Tory Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said “the government would take further action”
(Unlike the current Labour government, so far that is , though they have condemned what they called a ‘protest’ – “condemned” , oh well that should stop further thugathons happening- not ).
On Twitter Shapps wrote “We won’t tolerate reckless behaviour on motorways or ports (Dover this morning). I’m therefore seeking a further injunction to prevent this disruption.”
“Later, the government confirmed a further injunction had been approved by the High Court to prevent protesters from occupying the A20 and strategic roads linked to the Port of Dover”
(I wonder what are Labour doing as the current UK government to prevent more thugathons happening at Dover and elsewhere) ?
Also the then Tory MP Dover MP Natalie Elphicke called the (peaceful) protesters from Insulate Britain “hooligans”.
She Natalie Elphicke was the wife of Jailed (former) Tory MP Charlie Elphicke who was jailed for “sexual assaults on women” .
Natalie Elphicke had confirmed that in relation to her husband “she supported an appeal against (his) conviction on today’s excessive sentence,” adding that “the court seems to be on a bit of a mission” .
Natalie adopting her rules for some (those she calls hooligans) and then far more lenient rules for her husband.
BTW Natalie was a regular at Dover in her hate mission against immigrants – that’s why Keir Starmer was delighted when she defected to the Labour party.
Also writing on Twitter in 2021, she added: “The port is the vital artery of our nation’s trade – about one-fifth of all trade comes through Dover. We simply cannot afford further disruption to food and goods at this time.”.
Finally, as another BTW, there are apparently now two words that are being used by both the media and politicians that then allows them to not condemn nor act upon the thugathon at the weekend.
Those two words now being used to excuse the (intimidating) behaviour of thugs orchestrating a thugathon are that they, the thugs, also to be known as ‘protestors’ apprently have “legitimate concerns” .
It was also reported that when “asked if the Government considers the masked thugs swarming British ports are “far right” , Andy Burnham’s spokesman replies that “it’s an operational matter for the police to set out their response to the protests on the ground. So I will leave them to respond to that.”.
So pass the buck , sit on the fence and so then do not address it, that is until it explodes and seems impossible to stop (as in nip in the bloody bud) which then pretty much duplicates What Keir Starmer formerly did wrong as the former Labour PM. (so not “doing politics differently” but more really a carbon copy of what we suffered before with Starmer’s – lack of- leadership)
Seems to me as if Andy Burnham’s Chief of Staff is also a duplicate aka carbon copy of Keir Starmer’s former Chief of Staff , Morgan McSweeney no ?
Things can only get- worse not better – and unfortunately as Scotland is still a part of the UK , well we will find that makes us distinctly not better together with England and it’s bad politics and bad politicians (political house Jocks included in that also).
Seems as if the YES side were right in 2014 in their vision of what Scotland would suffer if they voted NO to independence (which also means that the NO side were completely wrong in their – fake-predictions and broken pledges – the same ones that the media does not hold them to account for once saying).
Stop the UK State (as most of those who are sane within) Scotland wants to get off.
Liz S
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Apologies for my above O/T and also for my above lengthy comment, but then I just cannot stop trying to expose the double standards that some apply to actual non intimidating peaceful protestors compared to those who are actually extremely and deliberately intimidating thugs who congregate illegally to spread their racial hate.
Then of course there is also the weakness of the now two recent Labour UK governments, seemingly too afraid to take any real action on these racist thugs just in case they lose support (that they do not actually have anyway) from certain voters who will probably never ever vote for them in any election.
It also seems to me that there are far far more #BAD types that the BBC should be really scrutinising and so then exposing, compared to the disproportionate amount of time and effort that they seem to put into reporting upon how #BAD they and other BritNats say the SNP supposedly are.
The BBC (and other British media) working only for Britain to be sustained (to still include Scotland).
Bottom line always. (in all of their media attacks against Scotland and the SNP).
Liz S
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