Ferry regulation risks sustainability, boss warns

The boss of a cross-Solent ferry operator has cautioned that regulating services could put "the sustainability of the business at risk".

Earlier this week Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he would "look seriously" at any proposal to limit fares on crossings to and from the Isle of Wight.

Fares, timetables and the reliability of crossings have been a source of frustration among both island residents and visitors.

Wightlink chief executive Katie Taylor told the BBC it ran a "really extensive timetable" by subsidising loss-making crossings with heavily-used services.

The prime minister was responding to a question in the House of Commons by Isle of Wight East MP Joe Robertson, calling for regulatory powers to control fares.

"I will look seriously at it, because I understand completely how critical that is to opportunity and growth both on the island and also on the mainland," he said.

In a subsequent letter to Burnham, Robertson said a lack of regulation had led to "extortionate prices and diminishing services".

He said an "obvious solution" was "democratic oversight in the form of regulatory and franchising powers", either exercised by the government or the devolved mayoral authority.

Burnham had said public control in the transport sector had allowed him to reduce bus fares when he was mayor of Greater Manchester.

Taylor said she "recognised the concerns" but insisted the costs of running ferry services had "increased massively" in recent years.

"We spend about £12m a year just maintaining our ships and ports," she told the BBC.

"Fundamentally the money has to come from somewhere - either from customers or from taxpayers.

"We're happy to have that conversation but you have to make sure the books balance, otherwise the sustainability of the businesses is at risk."

Taylor said about a fifth of services currently run at a loss, including most late-night crossings.

She explained it meant popular sailings effectively paid for lesser-used ones as well as initiatives such as fare caps for NHS staff and two free fares for under 18s.

"Those early and late sailings - we know it's super-important for those commuters," she added.

"If you start regulating, you make it more difficult for us as a business to be able to manage that cross subsidy ourselves."

She said the company ran 39,000 crossings a year and it was "hard to see with the current passenger volumes" it would be possible to run more.

"Making it less sustainable would mean we would have to reduce some of those loss-making services and those cross subsidies - then the reality is everyone loses," she added.

Leader of Isle of Wight Council Jonathan Bacon welcomed the prime minister's intervention.

"We need to actually look at what regulation is there to achieve - regulation is a costly process in itself," he said.

He conceded the council, with its "own financial difficulties", could not currently afford the estimated £250m it would cost to take over a ferry company itself.

"Regulation is part of the mix to get to the position where we have affordable ferries and crossings that serve people when they need to travel," he said.

Robertson previously introduced a private members bill aimed at bringing the regulation of boat routes throughout the country more in line with railways and buses.

A meeting of the Cross Solent Transport Group involving local MPs, the Department for Transport, ferry companies and other organisations is due to be held later this month.

Red Funnel declined to comment.

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X, or Instagram.