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Mr. Alison: As a distinguished ex-member of the Whips' Office, how would my hon. Friend feel about the occasional substitution of parliamentary Bills for Church Measures? He will understand the implications, from a Whip's point of view, of what might then arise.
Sir Sydney Chapman: After six and half years in the Whips' Office, my scarred memory leads me to believe that anything is possible, although the Whips' Office tries to avoid most things. I understand the point that my right hon. Friend makes. I would like the Ecclesiastical Committee's role to be more flexible, but I recognise that that in itself would require the 1919 Act to be amended.
Petrol Supplies (Highlands and Islands)
12.21 pm
Mrs. Ray Michie (Argyll and Bute): I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss the supply and price of petrol in the highlands and islands, as the matter is causing increasing concern not only to those who live in the area, where cars are not a luxury but a vital lifeline for people to go to work, to shop, and to visit the doctor or chemist. There is no choice when public transport is minimal or non-existent. The matter also concerns bodies involved in rural affairs, particularly those responsible for promoting the economic and social welfare of the area, such as the local enterprise councils and local authorities.
I am well aware of the widespread concern about high petrol prices and continuity of supply in other parts of rural Scotland, particularly in the Borders area represented by my right hon. and hon. Friends; but, as the title of this debate suggests, I shall concentrate today on the highlands and the unique situation of the many islands.
First, I shall give some examples of real prices and real places. I have brought along a map to assist the Minister, who may wish to refer to some of those places. The average cost of leaded petrol in the highlands and islands is 65.5p a litre, whereas the average cost in Edinburgh is 57p a litre. The average cost of unleaded petrol in the highlands and islands is 60p a litre, whereas, in a place like Dunfermline, it is 52p. For leaded petrol, a village in Shetland pays 66p a litre; Dornoch pays 67p; Ullapool pays 62p; and Tiree, an island in my constituency, pays 74p.
Someone heading to Tiree from Glasgow may fill up his car at Dumbarton and pay 54p a litre. He will travel through Tarbet on Loch Lomond, where the price goes up to 60p, on to Inverary where it costs 63p, and to Oban, where it goes down a little to 60p. He then drives his car on to the ferry, and pays a single fare of £65 and an extra £9.85 if he has a passenger. He arrives on the island of Tiree, to be faced with a price of 74p a litre. On the island of Colonsay in my constituency, Mr. Charles Mackinnon, who operates the school bus, would pay 49p a litre for diesel in Glasgow but must pay 86p a litre on the island.
A number of recent reports and surveys reflect growing anxiety at spiralling petrol costs and the future of supplies. The Rural Scotland Price Survey gives definitive figures showing the knock-on effect on the cost of living in those areas. In a paper published last month, the Scottish Consumer Council makes a telling statement:
The Petrol Retailers Association, which gave evidence to the Trade and Industry Select Committee on the subject on 4 June, criticises the role of the Office of Fair Trading,
and accuses it of failing to provide details of its market monitoring. I believe that it should be much more responsive to the concerns of those who want answers to the problem of petrol costs.
The Office of Fair Trading may not have much in the way of resources, but I hope that the Minister will encourage it to monitor the market. That would be easier to do if pricing were more transparent at wholesale level. Despite the fact that petrol prices have been falling at forecourt pumps throughout the UK, they have remained unacceptably high in the highlands and islands. The MMC has said in the past that it is all due to sparse populations and geographical factors, but that is no answer. The problem does not appear to rest with the small retailer who may put only up to 3p on a litre, simply to stay in business.
My second point--I hope the Minister will address it--is about the rapid closure of retail outlets for petrol, which is happening at an alarming rate, for a number of reasons, including the cost of upgrading petrol stations to meet increasingly stringent requirements such as storage tank testing and modifying pipe work as demanded by the petrol recovery directive; and increases in the real price of petrol to encourage the switch from private to public transport. That is laughable, because there is no public transport in many areas.
I have been told, but I cannot confirm the information, that Shell will not renew its contracts with garages that sell fewer than 2 million litres of petrol and diesel a year. The closure of petrol stations will have disastrous consequences for the availability of fuel and for jobs. It has been estimated that more than 600 jobs could be lost in the highlands and islands in the next 10 years, with four out of every 10 filling stations facing closure.
At the end of June, the Pier garage on the island of Jura in my constituency closed, leaving the island without any petrol or diesel. The owner has been offered a grant, but cannot find the rest of the money required to make up the total for capital investment. The island of Coll is in a similar position, because the cost of replacing the antiquated pump and tank is beyond the means of the retailer who provides the only outlet on the island.
I have a copy of a letter that was sent to my hon. Friend the Member for Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber (Sir R. Johnston)--I am glad to see him in his place--earlier this month about the non-existence of petrol and diesel outlets in the Acharacle area. The writer states:
Mr. Charles Kennedy (Ross, Cromarty and Skye):
Will my hon. Friend stress to the Minister that the problem, as she has argued throughout her speech, affects the whole highlands and islands area? For example, Miss Wallace, who runs the Kinlochewe service station in the Wester Ross area in my constituency, has been to see me. Her letter to me states:
I have tried to give the Minister a picture of what is happening, and I would like him to tell me what can be done. Will he refer the matter to the MMC, so that we can find out what the oil companies and supermarket chains intend to do in the light of threats to continuing supply, as a result of--it appears--private price wars in urban areas?
The Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs (Mr. John M. Taylor):
I congratulate the hon. Member for Argyll and Bute (Mrs. Michie) on securing the Adjournment debate. I am also pleased that, as I reply to her, my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Scottish Office is in his place.
"All of the 15 least accessible travel-to-work areas in the UK are in Scotland. Ten are in the highlands and islands."
A report issued last January by Halcrow Fox for the Highlands and Islands Action Group on Hydrocarbon Fuel Issues found that petrol prices in the highlands and islands
"are up to 11 per cent. greater than in urban locations in Scotland."
The excellent submission by the Western Isles council to the Trade and Industry Select Committee draws attention to the fact that, in 1981, despite a lot of pressure, the Office of Fair Trading declined to take action, but eventually did so in 1987 by referring the matter to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. However, it declined to conduct its own investigation into rural prices, and the MMC conclusion at that time was negative.
"About forty years ago, there were five petrol pumps in this area, and hardly any cars. Now most households have at least one car, and there is no petrol in the Acharacle area . . . Tourists coming into the area now are having great difficulty, not knowing about the petrol situation."
Apart from the effect on people living and working in the area, the lack of petrol outlets will have a detrimental effect on the tourist trade, which is such an important industry in the highlands and islands.
"My own fate after 28 years in this business is bad enough, but the demise of numerous stations will inevitably send shock waves through all the businesses as all are dependent on the tourist trade."
17 Jul 1996 : Column 1100
Those comments, and those that my hon. Friend has quoted from her constituents, underscore the need for the action that she has recommended.
Mrs. Michie:
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that example. There are many such examples, and an increasing number of letters in our post bags stress what is happening in the highlands and islands.
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