FERRIES MUST BE INCLUDED IN MAYORAL POWERS SAY EAST WIGHT MP AND POLICE COMMISSIONER

Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones has joined Joe Robertson MP’s calls for a future Mayor to have powers over cross-Solent transport.

As part of the Local Government restructuring, the proposed Mayor of the Hampshire and Solent Combined Authority would have oversight of public transport, including by road, rail and bus – but not ferries under current plans.

Donna Jones, who will also be the Conservative candidate for the Mayoral elections expected next May, says that must change.

Commissioner Jones has this week spoken at the Select Committee Evidence Hearing for the English Devolution Bill, where she called for ferries to be included within Mayoral powers. She raised the unique geography of the combined area and how the Solent caused problems for Isle of Wight residents, supply chains and service provision.

She told the cross-party committee of MPs:

“It is cost prohibitive for a lot of people who want to travel off the island who live there. I will be asking a right to request for the right to have a regulator power over those ferry companies who are going to be operating, or do operate, across the Solent.”

Mr Robertson has already asked the new Maritime Minister, Keir Mather MP, to intervene and ensure that the Mayor has regulatory powers over cross-Solent transport. He said that the Isle of Wight is the only place in the UK reliant on unregulated private companies for essential travel services.

The Isle of Wight East MP has said:

“As ever, the Isle of Wight is being sidelined. The Government is creating a new Mayor for Hampshire and Isle of Wight with transport powers for road, rail and buses but not ferries. The Government say that they take the issue of ferries seriously, yet do not even refer to them in the consultation document on our local transport.

“I am pleased that Donna Jones and I have a shared view on this. The ferry companies should not be given special treatment. When Isle of Wight Councillors vote on 1st October, they should reject the deal and send it back to Government to put ferry powers in it. This is the time for us to all pull together in the interest of the Island, stand up to the ferry companies and send a clear message to Government.”

A vote by Isle of Wight Councillors on whether to agree to the Government’s combined mayor proposal is due to be taken on 1st October.