THE chief executive of Greenock bus firm McGill's insists that central government should not be left to pick up a multi-million pound bill for bus franchising.

Ralph Roberts was reacting after after Glasgow SNP councillor Malcolm Mitchell reportedly urged the Scottish and UK governments to fund Strathclyde Partnership for Transport's franchising plans.

Mr Roberts insists that councillors should not be able to avoid making tough decisions over the radical shakeup which is being proposed for the sector.

He said: “In our discussions with the then-transport minister Humza Yousaf, when the Transport Act that permitted franchising was being formed, he was very clear that if local authorities want to use these powers, they would have to find the money in their own budgets and central government would not be footing the bill.

“He was also very clear that there would need to be a significant improvement in services as a result or it would not be allowed. If that rule was in place in England, the Bee Network in Manchester wouldn't have happened as the improvements have been marginal at best."

The owners of McGill's, Sandy and James Easdale, are strongly opposed to the franchise plan and have vowed to fight against it. 

Mr Roberts says that other ways can be found to improve services.

He said: “Of course, everyone wants better buses, no one more so than bus operators.

“The first step is to fix the roads and give buses more road space. Clearing the main arteries of parking is the easiest and cheapest way to do this - it costs only paint so what is the delay?

"That is the dilemma for councillors: doing it correctly - and cheaply - will upset car owners. So, they want someone else to foot the bill to do it expensively and very inefficiently.

“Cllr Mitchell’s plea for funding from central government is essentially a call to run up a huge bill so councillors don’t have to make difficult decisions that will prove unpopular with motorists.

"Meanwhile, anyone who is even remotely involved in public transport knows that privatisation (deregulation) of the buses slowed down the footfall decline - and that the 1986 Act actually worked – something we would urge Cllr Mitchell to take note of."

Mr Roberts added: “When McGill’s Group fight these plans, we are not only preventing the business that we have built, at great cost, being handed to a foreign multi-national for free, we are also trying to save the taxpayer from unnecessary expense."