MINISTERS have been urged to reconsider scrapping plans to give asylum seekers free bus travel across Scotland – and scolded for the “unfair” way the news was made public.
The Scottish Government last week shelved plans to roll out a national pilot scheme to pay for asylum seekers to travel for free on buses, blaming insufficient funds.
Greens MSP Mark Ruskell and Labour’s Paul Sweeney have written to the Scottish Government asking ministers to reverse their “misguided” decision.
In a letter to Equalities Minister Kaukab Stewart and Fiona Hyslop, Transport Secretary, the MSPs expressed their “deep disappointment” at the change.
They said: “The pilots which have already taken place in Scotland, including in Glasgow and Aberdeen, demonstrate the value of free bus travel for people seeking asylum – some of whom are on as little as £1.36 a day and regularly choosing between food and transport.
“Turning back on this commitment, which would provide support for some of the most vulnerable in our society, is misguided and we would strongly urge you to reconsider this decision.”
Ruskell and Sweeney also asked to be informed if there were plans for the pilot to go ahead at a later date.
And they hit out at the way the decision was announced – after refugee and asylum seeker organisations were told about the change by Stewart (below) during an event at Glasgow University to mark the launch of the Scottish Government’s new refugee integration strategy.
They added: “We also wish to note our serious concerns around the way this decision was reached and subsequently communicated.
"Despite this decision being shared privately in a meeting with a handful of organisations last week and announced verbally by you at the strategy launch on August 19, we understand that this decision has not been officially confirmed in writing to stakeholders.
“The funding for the pilot was confirmed and announced in October 2023 and third sector organisations tell us they have been inundated with enquiries about when free bus travel will be available since then.”
They added that refugee organisations had come as a “serious shock to many people in the asylum system and the organisations that support them” and said making the U-turn “without official communication and at such short notice is unfair”.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “This letter was only sent on Friday and ministers will respond in due course.
“As MSPs will be aware, we are unfortunately having to take some very difficult decisions to deliver balanced and sustainable spending plans for the 2024-25 financial year."
They said that asylum seekers under the age of 22 or older than 60 would still get free bus travel as part of other concession schemes and said the Scottish Government remained "committed to supporting people seeking asylum".
The spokesperson added: "We want to work collaboratively with the UK Government to contribute ideas that build on shared priorities and where possible provide evidence of impacts and needs.
"By working together and sharing learning, there is great potential for tangible improvements to be made for refugees and people seeking asylum living in the UK.”
