Dunfermline and West Fife MP Willie Rennie and Dunfermline West MSP Jim Tolson have challenged Scottish Finance Secretary, John Swinney, to dump his belligerent opposition to value for money PPP funding of the new Forth crossing after the Office for National Statistics ruled that they can continue to appear off balance sheet in the national accounts.

Mr Swinney had said in January that a public-private partnership deal for the bridge would have represented value for money but that the money would 'fundamentally change the viability of the proposition' if the schemes were to appear on balance sheet.

PPP schemes had been expected to come on balance sheet as a result of the ONS adopting new international financing reporting standards however; the ONS' ruling has now paved the way for a PPP deal for the bridge

Commenting Mr Rennie said:

"The ONS' ruling means that the path is now clear to adopt a value for money public-private partnership deal for the Forth Bridge. With that in mind, it's crucial that John Swinney's blinkered intransigence is now overcome.

"Not so long ago John Swinney considered that the PPP option represented real value for money but now has conveniently ignored that judgement as his ideological obsession is really the dominating factor.

Jim Tolson said: 'The failure of the Scottish Government to consider all the funding options nor come to an agreement with the UK Government leaves the whole transport infrastructure programme, including the new Forth crossing, in a state of limbo.'

'I appeal to John Swinney to look at all the options to sort out the funding arrangement. Business, commuters and car users in Fife need certainty and soon.'

Notes:

1. John Swinney's remarks from official report: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParli...

2. Jim Tolson has tabled Parliamentary Questions on the issue