McMillan Highlights Winter Resilience

Stuart McMillan MSP, (SNP) has spoken out on Inverclyde’s reaction to the ongoing snowy conditions.

During a debate in the Scottish Parliament on winter resilience Mr. McMillan spoke of his own experiences and that of others in Inverclyde affected by the snow.

Following the debate Mr. McMillan said;

"I was keen to highlight my experiences both growing up in Port Glasgow and currently where I live in Greenock.

"I know that compared to others last week I got off extremely lightly with my travel plans to Parliament but I empathise with those caught out by the heavier than expected snow fall.

"Inverclyde was by no means the only local authority who gave an initial poor response to the conditions and in their defence the sheer volume of snow in such a short space of time was extremely difficult to contend with.

"I hope that the snow forecast for this week and continuing over the festive period will be dealt with more swiftly in Inverclyde and across the country and in a more appropriate manner, I certainly know that the new Transport Minister, Keith Brown MSP, is doing everything he can to keep on top of the situation.

"The Scottish Government have worked up a six-point plan in how to deal with such a situation again and I know this will go a long way to alleviate any potential problems if we all play our part in keeping Inverclyde safe this winter."

ENDS

Note to Editors:

Measures in the Scottish Government's six-point plan include:

- Storing additional salt and grit at key locations on the national trunk road network for quicker access

- Using traffic management resources to enable diversions where necessary

- Further improving the Operating Companies resources by adapting vehicles, such as landscaping vehicles, for clearing snow

- Using the option of removing trunk road and motorway central barriers to allow easy access to blocked or broken down vehicles

- Working with the Police to consider how we can stack HGVs if conditions deteriorate in order to keep traffic moving

- Providing central Scotland's Trunk Road Incident Support Service (TRISS) emergency response vehicles with welfare kits of blankets and supplies

Stuart McMillan MSP's speech can be found in full here from 8.30am on Friday 17 December: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/index.htm