Passengers no longer being able to book tickets for the ferry with cash will be under the spotlight in Keys next week.
The Steam Packet announced that all passengers will be required to book tickets by card or contactless as of March 27.
Currently, cash transactions account for just 1% of total ticket sales, with the government saying the Police have been “aware for some time that cash payments for tickets are often exploited by criminal gangs looking to traffic drugs and cash between the island and the UK”.
Despite this, there has been some controversy of the move with some seeing it as overreach by the state and accusing the Constabulary of ‘Big Brother’ tactics against law abiding citizens.
When the Keys sit, Jason Moorhouse (Arbory, Castletown and Malew) will ask the Treasury Minister Dr Alex Allinson what discussions were had with the Steam Packet before the decision was made.
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