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Grangemouth oil refinery
29/04/2008
Finance Secretary John Swinney visited the Grangemouth plant this morning as the two-day strike by workers ended and fuel supplies began to be distributed widely again.
Before meeting the Ineos management and trade union representatives he said:
"The public response to the current dispute has been overwhelmingly measured and responsible. I want to thank the public, but we all still have to be patient, conserve fuel where possible and allow production to resume. If further fuel purchases can be postponed until midweek, that would ease pressure at the pumps as deliveries return to normal levels.
"I welcome the sensible action taken to release fuel for essential services and I thank the union and Ineos for their co-operation on this.
"Like everyone in the country, we want this dispute to be settled - that can only be done by both sides getting round the table and resuming talks as soon as the strike is over. We will continue to encourage the union and management at Grangemouth to do everything possible to end this dispute."
Last night in London First Minister Alex Salmond and Prime Minister Gordon Brown held a private meeting to discuss the Grangemouth situation.
The First Minister also met with UK Business Secretary John Hutton today in Edinburgh.
Following their meeting, Mr Salmond said:
"I've spoken to Ineos and the union every day since last Wednesday and there is no doubt that their thoughts are increasingly turning towards solutions to the dispute.
"They have to sit down and resolve their differences and be given the time and the space to do it. I welcome the fact that both parties have been extremely co-operative in minimising the inevitable inconvenience in terms of getting supplies out.
"We are in a much better place than we were a few days ago - let's hope this positive progress continues."
Business as usual for ambulance service
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon visited an ambulance station in Edinburgh to see how the emergency services have coped throughout the Grangemouth fuel strike.
She said:
"I am visiting the ambulance station in Edinburgh today to pay tribute to the staff who have continued to provide a first class service throughout this challenging period.
"I also want to reassure the public that emergency services are continuing throughout the fuel dispute and fuel supplies are getting through to services like the Scottish Ambulance Service.
"The Scottish Government is asking the public to be patient and continue using fuel responsibly.
"We are anticipating some inconvenience for members of the public over the next couple of days until fuel starts coming out of Grangemouth again as normal. Until then, we will make sure that essential services - including ambulances - continue to get the fuel they need.
"Now that the two-day strike is over, I join everyone in Scotland in hoping that things can get back to normal as quickly as possible and the parties involve get back round the table."
Impact on farming industry
Minister for Environment Michael Russell spoke to Jim McLaren, President of the National Farmers Union for Scotland, earlier this afternoon regarding the situation at Grangemouth refinery.
He said:
"It gave me the opportunity to reassure Jim as a representative of the farming sector that supply issues which have cropped up around Scotland are being dealt with quickly and effectively.
"We are aware of isolated short-term supply issues, but when these situations have arisen, suppliers have been working to ensure garages have been re-stocked as quickly as possible.
"In relation to Highland specifically, there has been a tanker delivery of fuel in the last day into Aberdeen. This includes diesel and kerosene and I would expect this delivery to ease the situation in this area.
"I appreciate this is causing some disruption for the farming community, and also for the veterinary profession, however we would like to reassure them that we anticipate fuel supplies are likely to return to near normal levels within the next few days.
"The demands for fuel by the farming sector vary at different times of year. We are very mindful of that and securing a constant and reliable supply is the only way to make certain the sector can operate at peak efficiency.
"While the Scottish Government welcomes the sensible action taken by both parties to address operational issues over the strike period, I would urge both parties to settle the dispute as quickly as possible."