Labour leader Anas Sarwar warns Cal-Mac model 'not fit for purpose'
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The Scottish Government's model for the replacement of CalMac's ageing West Coast ferry fleet is not fit for purpose, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has told Parliament.
Speaking after First Minister's Questions where he challenged Nicola Sturgeon about the failure of Ferguson's shipyard in Port Glasgow to make the shortlist for two new CalMac ferries despite being owned by the Scottish Government, M Sarwar said: "Scotland’s ancient CalMac fleet urgently needs to be replaced and there are jobs across our country that need to be protected.
"But Nicola Sturgeon has somehow managed a system where a Scottish yard, supporting Scottish jobs and owned by the Scottish Government failed to even make the shortlist to build ferries for Scotland.
"That a Scottish Government-owned company can’t win a Scottish Government contract to build ships is a national scandal that is now an international humiliation.
"This government has no strategy to expand services, no fleet to meet Scotland’s needs and no plan to fix the problem.
"The Cal-Mac - CMAL (Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd) model isn’t working, it isn’t fit for purpose and must be replaced.
"But it isn't just ferries which highlight the failure of the Scottish Government.
"We've seen them create jobs for China providing steel for the Queensferry crossing, jobs for Indonesia supplying wind turbines.
"And now jobs for Turkey, Romania or Poland to provide our ferries.
"It is time for the First Minister to – in her own words – 'come down on the side of a Scottish industry, a Scottish shipyard and Scottish jobs'.
"Because the harsh reality is the only thing being manufactured in SNP Scotland is grievance."
Mr Sarwar also warned of increased disruption to island communities with 15 CalMac vessels now more than 25 years old and prone to mechanical failures.
In response, First Minister Nicol Sturgeon said the Scottish Government had delivered on the protection of shipbuilding jobs as without its intervention, Ferguson's would have closed.
"Ferguson's is on a journey back to recovery. Its focus right now is making sure the two ferries that are currently delayed are completed," she continued.
"The work underway at Ferguson's I hope will equip it to compete for new orders and new contracts in the future."
