The Scottish Liberal Democrats have said the Scottish Government is “washing its hands” of its commitment to a subsidy for ferry fares.

Transport Minister Fiona Hyslop wrote to Orkney MSP Liam McArthur after he asked about the status of plans for a Road Equivalent Tariff (RET) for the ferry routes.

This kind of subsidy is in place for Western Isles routes but not on the privately-run Orkney ferries.

The minister said that RET would fall foul of the Subsidy Control Act introduced last year.

She said: “It would therefore, in the same way as under EU State aid rules, be seen as distorting the market if Scottish Government introduced RET on ferry routes where there are private operators.”

Hyslop said a wider review of island ferry fares is ongoing.

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