Cruise ships show interest in Buckie and Moray
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A charge for cruise ships has been created in the expectation that some may soon begin calling in at Buckie Harbour.
It was revealed today at Moray Council that cruise ship operators have been in contact regarding the possibility of using the seaside town as a base to explore the wider region.
Nicola Moss, the local authority's head of environmental and commercial services, said: "With the best will in the world the largest vessels will not be fitting in Buckie, but we have had some active enquiries in relation to smaller vessels – which is very welcome news.
"This has prompted the inclusion of a specific charge."
Marc Macrae (Fochabers/Lhanbryde, Conservative) stated that 'tender' vessels would be able to ferry cruise liner passengers to and from the dockside.
He added Moray's coach companies would benefit.
Cllr Macrae said: "We see many coach companies here travelling further afield to take cruise passengers. So if they can pick them up locally and take them around Moray to see the food and drink we have here – that would be very welcome.
"It's useful to have a charge on the books so that, if an operator contacts us, we can supply them with the information, rather than having to stall and delay."
Cllr Macrae added it would be a "great day for Moray tourism" if Buckie could attract "even a very small slice" of the nautical traffic which frequents Invergordon, Lerwick and Kirkwell.
Draeyk van der Horn (Forres, Greens) voiced concern about what the knock-on effects could be.
He asked: "What impact would cruise ships in the harbour have on other vessels? What impact would unloading passengers have on the community?
"Rather than putting down a charge, I would remove it and first have a report about the possible impacts."
Ms Moss replied that the level of interest expressed was not going to cause major problems.
She added: "It's not in anybody's interest to put the harbour under undue pressure."
Cllr Van der Horn replied: "Cruise ships are routinely sited as one the most polluting vessels on the high seas – and we're talking about welcoming them to the coast of Moray.
"We need to have a report about what the interest amounts to and how we tackle that.
"Making a decision on charging is stating that we're already happy with cruise ships coming to Buckie Harbour."
Cllr Van der Horn put forward an amendment stating the council should withdraw its charge on cruise ships until more discussions had taken place on whether they were welcome in Moray.
However he failed to get a seconder.
The charge is 50p per ton. A cruise ship can weigh anything from 3000 tons to 250,000 tons.
