Clyde shipbuilding 'thriving' thanks to UK Government investment in defence
Shipbuilding on the Clyde is "thriving" thanks to UK Government investment in defence, the Scottish Secretary has said.
Ian Murray welcomed the announcement today a Scottish Government-owned shipyard at Port Glasgow had secured an order from the Royal Navy to build part of a new frigate.
Ferguson Marine, which was nationalised by SNP ministers in 2019, has struggled in recent years to complete two new car ferries ordered by CalMac. A committee of MSPs last week warned it needed urgent investment to allow it to survive.
The firm has now won a contract to build three sections of HMS Birmingham, which is currently under construction at the BAE yard at Govan.
Murray said: "Shipbuilding on the Clyde is thriving thanks to UK Government investment in defence. This Royal Navy contract going to Ferguson Marine is great news for the workers there, who will play a key role in keeping our country safe. This is the UK's defence dividend in action for Scotland."
Fergusons employs 300 workers but only had one contract remaining on its books - to finish the long-delayed ferry, MV Glen Rosa. The yard recently missed out on a government-funded order for seven small CalMac ferries, which went to a Polish shipyard instead.]
Inverclyde MP Martin McCluskey said the contract for work on HMS Birmingham was a "lifeline" for the yard.
"We want the yard to be building boats, not just fabrication as it's doing for BAE - but what this is today is the first new contract the yard has had in quite some time," he said.
"It's providing them with work to keep going, hopefully bridge a gap between now and whenever the next contract comes which I hope is a direct award for Lord of the Isles from the Scottish government."
Glasgow's two remaining shipyards at Govan and Scotstoun are owned by defence giant BAE Systems and specialise in building complex warships for the Royal Navy.
Both sites are currently working at capacity to complete the Type 26 frigate programme, which will run into the 2030s.
It comes as the SNP Government was last month accused of of "student union politics" after it refused to invest in a specialist skills centre to train the next generation of Scottish shipbuilders.
Scottish Enterprise, a taxpayer-funded quango, refused to hand over £2.5m to help open a world-class welding college on the banks of the Clyde.
The snub was caused by a longstanding Nationalist policy of refusing to allow public money to be spent on anything it classes as "munitions".
The UK Government later announced it would instead make up the funding shortfall if SNP ministers continue to refuse to back the scheme, which is supported by British aerospace giant Rolls-Royce.
John Healey, the UK Defence Secretary, accused John Swinney's Government of engaging in "student union politics".
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