Roddick: ‘Boris bridge’ money should pay for Shetland’s fixed links

SNP MSP Emma Roddick has called on the Tory UK Government to make good on the money Scotland and Northern Ireland are owed as their share of the £20 billion from Boris Johnson’s ill-fated plan to build a bridge to Northern Ireland.

The project – promoted by Boris Johnson – was costed at £20 billion, but since the plans for the bridge were canned the money has not been allocated for spending in Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Roddick believes that Shetland’s share of this money could be used to build fixed links between the islands and accelerate their journey to net zero.

Commenting, Roddick said:

“If Mr Johnson wants to connect some islands, he could start with ones where it is actually possible.

“Half of Shetland’s emissions come from the inter-island ferry network. Getting to net zero could be dramatically accelerated by the creation of tunnels that could replace some of these ferries and allow for bus travel between islands.

“The ‘Boris Bridge’ was going to cost £20 billion. If this funding were reallocated on a pro-rata basis to Scotland and Northern Ireland, Shetland could receive over £62m in transport funds. A 2016 estimate suggested the cost of a Lerwick-Bressay fixed link could be covered twice over by those funds alone.

“Boris Johnson should fulfill what he can of his impossible promise to the people of Scotland and pay for Shetland’s tunnels.”