Transport Scotland - Information regarding public consultation on next Northern Isles Ferry Services contract: FOI release

Information requested

In accordance with Freedom of Information legislation, please answer the following regarding the public consultation on the next Northern Isles Ferry Services contract (NIFS4).

1. Please provide the total costs of the (i) written consultation and (ii) the in-person engagement events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness.

2. Please provide the number of staff that worked on the (i) written consultation and (ii) the in-person engagement events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness.

3. For the in-person engagement events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness, please provide the cost of (i) flights (ii) hotels (iii) room bookings (iv) other expenses.

Response

The answer to your question is:

1. (i) The total cost for the written consultation: £27,571.24
(ii) The total cost of the in-person engagement events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness: £10.667.22

2. (i) Initial drafting of the consultation document was undertaken by two staff members who coordinated, drafted and managed the process. Additional internal colleagues contributed to design and publication, and an external agency was commissioned to analyse and report on the findings. Transport Scotland does not record the exact number of staff involved or the time spent on this work, as there is no business requirement to do so.
(ii) The number of staff who took part in the in-person engagements events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness was eleven.

3. The costs for in-person engagement events held in Lerwick, Kirkwall and Stromness are shown below in a table format:

Travel to and from Aberdeen including subsistence expenses	£1,842.19
Ferry Travel	£2,122.00
Hotel Accommodation	£6,253.03
Event Room Booking	£ 450.00
Flights	£ 00.00

The staff costs outlined above include those for the NIFS4 team members who travelled to the Islands to deliver the public engagement sessions. They also cover the costs of other Transport Scotland Ferries staff who attended these sessions to discuss their work on the Islands Connectivity Plan, vessel procurement and contract management activities. This approach was taken to provide efficiencies in costs and creating an environment for the public to engage on a wide range of ferry topics at a single event.

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