By Charlene Wilson

PLANS FOR a permanent cross-Forth hovercraft link between Fife and Edinburgh could be dead in the water as the venture ran into serious funding problems after becoming embroiled in what has been described as “a game of political football.”

The Courier revealed on Monday that the estimated completion date for the Stagecoach-led project had been pushed back to 2009, despite initial projections that the service would be running by the end of this year.

At the time, the company made it clear that talks were continuing and work was progressing, albeit at a slower pace than initially anticipated.

However, a company spokesman yesterday made the shock announcement that all work on the project would be frozen from the end of this month until adequate public funding was secured.

He also voiced “serious concerns” over “cynical politicisation” of the initiative after it was revealed last month that the SNP’s biggest donor also happened to be the owner of the Stagecoach group.

Brian Souter pledged to invest £10.3 million in the project so long as a public sector subsidy of £3.3 million was found for the first three years.

Lothians Labour MSP George Foulkes warned that, in light of the fact Mr Souter had given £625,000 to the SNP in the last year and, as owner of Stagecoach, could receive millions of pounds of public money to subsidise the hovercraft service across the Forth without the contract going out to tender, the “highest possible standards of openness must apply.”

In a full and frank statement issued yesterday, Stagecoach lambasted certain politicians for using an innovative project designed to bring significant transport, economic and social inclusion benefits to the region for their own gain.

A spokesman said, “We have been entirely transparent in discussing the business case for the hovercraft project with many stakeholders and we would expect the same rigorous examination and financial assessment of our proposals as any other transport project.

“However, we have become increasingly frustrated and angry at the cynical use of the hovercraft project as a political football.

“Some politicians have put personal and party self-interest before the communities in Fife and Edinburgh.

“The fact is that we have received support for the hovercraft concept from both the current Scottish Government and the previous administration, which approved public funding to meet part of the cost of the two-week trial in July 2007.”

He added, “There has been wide support from across the political spectrum for our proposals for a permanent cross-Forth link and we have been working on the concept for nearly a decade.

“We have presented our proposals to the Scottish Government, South East of Scotland Transport Partnership (SEStran), Fife Council and Edinburgh Council.

“However, we are unable to progress the project further until we have clarity from the Scottish Government and public sector agencies on their delivery role and the funding process, which is critical to the future of the initiative.”

Despite Stagecoach calling for an end to political bickering, The political war raged on yesterday with SNP Lothians MSP Shirley-Anne Somerville accusing Mr Foulkes of “putting personal and party self-interest before the communities in Fife and Edinburgh.”

“This is obviously a direct result of the blundering by Labour politicians like Lord George Foulkes.

“His attempts at smear and innuendo against the SNP Government could cost the communities of Fife and Lothian the opportunity of a new means of travelling to and from work.

“Lord Foulkes is obviously trying to make political gain at the expense of commuters and he should apologise for his smears.

Another Scottish Government source said, “George Foulkes looks incredibly foolish.

“What he said has not been helpful. He needs to take a long hard look at himself before making some of these wilder comments.”

Speaking yesterday, Mr Foulkes refused to retract his earlier statement, saying instead, “Let’s be clear, I’ve always supported exploring the idea of a hovercraft ferry service across the Forth.

“But when you’re dealing with over £3 million of taxpayers’ money as a public subsidy to a company owned by one of the SNP’s largest donors, the highest possible standards of scrutiny and accountability must apply, and European rules on tendering adhered to.

“I had a very constructive meeting with Stagecoach just two weeks ago where I expressed my support for the project in principle, and made some suggested amendments to their plan which they said they considered helpful.

“The remarks made by Stagecoach today are therefore astonishing and I can only assume that once they realised they could not be given a privileged position because of their owner’s links to the SNP, they decided to find an excuse to justify their decision to backtrack.”

More than 32,000 passengers used the 150-passenger single craft Kirkcaldy-Portobello Forthfast service during a two-week trial last year. with commuters and visitors ditching the car in favour of an integrated hovercraft and bus journey from Fife to Edinburgh.

Stagecoach predicted the venture would attract 870,000 passengers within its first four years and would be commercially viable after three years.

Around £500,000 of the £10.3 million pledged has already been invested by Stagecoach in the plans while the project also received backing of £92,000 from the South East of Scotland Transport Partnership.

SEStran chairman Russell Imrie said he was “surprised” at the “sudden turn of events.”

He added, “We expressed our support for the project, but both parties recognised that much more work needed to be done on the business plan, before any commitment for public funding could be made.

“We support the scheme in principle, but we must be confident that a solid business case exists.

“The scheme will also be subject to a STAG evaluation to ensure that it warrants becoming a priority for public spending.

“In the meantime, we have commissioned legal advice exploring ways in which the project could be supported and procured without breaching EU rules.

“Stagecoach deserve praise for their initiative in carrying out the trial.”

“This is precisely the kind of innovative thinking needed to ensure that the South East of Scotland develops an integrated transportation system, fit for the 21st century.

“We will be seeking an early meeting with Stagecoach to explore ways forward for this project.”

The next planned hovercraft event- a trial run from Kirkcaldy to Alloa for the benefit of councillors and officials from Clackmannanshire Council- will go ahead as expected on Friday.

Ornithologists will take part in a week-long study from Friday to observe wintering bird behaviour between Kirkcaldy and Portobello before operational work completely ceases for the foreseeable future on February 29.