MSP Kenneth Gibson is calling for an end to the unfair parcel delivery charges facing online shoppers in Cumbrae.

Speaking in a Scottish Parliament debate, Mr Gibson highlighted new research from Citizens Advice Scotland which shows that online shoppers in Cumbrae can be expected to pay a ‘postcode penalty’ of up to 50% more than the rest of the UK, purely because of where they live.

Commenting, Mr Gibson said: “This is an issue of real concern to islanders. It is extremely unfair that some of the most loyal online shoppers in Cumbrae and across rural and island Scotland are facing location discrimination by having to pay a postcode penalty to get items delivered this Christmas.

“Citizens Advice Scotland’s research shows that many businesses and families are having to pay an average of nearly £19 extra when buying goods online.

“I am delighted that my colleague Richard Lochhead MSP brought this issue to Parliament so we can highlight the problem and businesses from charging wildly different delivery fees for island communities simply because they can.

“Having convened the Cross-Party Group on Postal Services for five years, this is something we lobbied the UK Government about for years, given that postal services are reserved to Westminster.

“Hopefully the campaign will finally persuade the UK Government to and online businesses to stop this discrimination and adopt set standards for deliveries to every corner of the UK, including Cumbrae, just as we have for the delivery of letters through the Universal Service Obligation.”