Scottish Government admits scrapping unfinished CalMac ferry and starting again could be cheaper

dailyrecord.co.uk:

An SNP minister has admitted it could be cheaper to scrap one of the troubled CalMac ferries currently under construction and start again.But Neil Gray said the Scottish Government would push ahead with finishing the existing vessel as a new ferry could not be deployed until 2027 at the earliest.The plan required the Wellbeing Economy Cabinet Secretary to issue a written direction to civil servants authorising spending on the ferry.

CalMac is currently waiting for two new vessels - Glen Sannox and the as-yet unnamed 802 - to be being constructed at the nationalised Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow.But completion is now several years late and costs are massively over budget.In a statement to MSPs, Gray said: “Our island communities deserve to be supported by two new, energy efficient vessels with the capacity and reliability required to support vibrant island economies.“While I accept the pure value for money assessment on vessel 802 is challenging, this narrow calculation does not take into account the added delays, the wider benefits of continuing the vessel’s build at Ferguson Marine or the full cost of not doing so.“If written authority to complete vessel 802 at Ferguson’s was not provided, we could be looking at a delay in deploying a new vessel to May 2027 at the earliest – four years from now and two-and-a-half years after 802 is due to be delivered.

I do not consider that it is acceptable to ask our island communities to wait this further period. "Also, the due diligence assessment cannot take into account the impact of withholding investment on the Inverclyde and wider Scottish economies.“While the impact on our island communities and on our economy are not covered by the value for money assessment, they have