Scotland's islands have contributed a great deal to this country's environmental, cultural and economic heritage. They continue to shape and define modern Scotland. Yet their populations are in decline. There are exceptions where the trend is being bucked but, unless the demographics improve, some islands, for instance in the Western Isles archipelago, will be emptied of their people. All of Scotland would be the poorer for that.

Since devolution, government has recognised that a strategic response was necessary if the population drift from fragile islands was to be halted and turned into a population gain. The previous Scottish Executive introduced measures, including a 40% cut in the ticket price for the residents of several islands to fly to the major Scottish airports and limited free ferry trips to the mainland, to help support peripheral communities. The SNP administration at Holyrood has decided, in principle, to take government support to a new level. John Swinney, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, confirmed yesterday that an initiative is to be tested that could significantly cut the cost of a ferry journey to and from Scotland's islands.

It is based on the Road Equivalent Tariff (Ret) scheme that operates in Norway. This takes account of the economic, social and environmental factors that recognise the positive role ferries play in supporting island and coastline communities. It is reflected in much cheaper ferry ticket prices. These come at a cost but making vital communication links affordable has caused small communities not only to survive but also to grow. It will be a development worth celebrating if the executive's initiative has a similar impact on Scotland's islands. Whether that will be the outcome cannot be predicted with any certainty at this stage. The Scottish scheme will be tested on at least one of the ferry routes between the mainland and the Western Isles. This approach is judicious, not least because there are many outstanding questions to answer before any scheme could be rolled out elsewhere. As Mr Swinney pointed out, these apply to fare structures, how they are to be worked out and value for money. In other words, would the investment bring about benefits that justified the levels of public expenditure required? That question cannot be answered definitively on the basis of a test run, as Professor Neil Kay points out in The Herald today. Population declines in peripheral communities and hinterlands are not reversed overnight. It will take time, and a commitment to invest, to reap demographic dividends.

Islanders recognise there is a price to pay for living in relative remoteness but that cost has become disproportionately high and is contributing to the problem. It is possible that MacRet could change all of that. But to whom would the scheme apply? Islanders only, or tourists and second-homeowners, too? What about businesses that trade with islands? Including them would add to the cost. What would be the impact of an effective additional subsidy on future ferry tendering processes under the European Commission, bearing in mind the recent one involving Caledonian MacBrayne turned into a shambles not of the operator's making? The Herald believes there is a case for providing support to the islands as a social necessity. Creating the right model, made cost-effective through time, is what this exercise should aim to achieve.