Shipyard workers 'not to blame' for CalMac ferry fiasco as union calls for more orders to boost fleet
The GMB said Scotland's ageing maritime transport network needed to be substantially rebuilt to provide more reliable links to island communities.
The union represents workers at the Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow which has been at the centre of a long-running political scandal involving the building of the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa ferries.
Only one of the boats has so far entered service and there is no firm completion date for the other. The wild cost overruns of their construction pushed Fergusons into the red and resulted with the yard being nationalised by the SNP Government in 2019.
Alex Logan, the union's convenor at the Port Glasgow shipyard, told delegates at the STUC conference today that Scotland's ferry system should be restructured.
He argued such a move is needed to protect island communities with Fergusons becoming 'a cornerstone of an industrial strategy to provide Scotland's publicly-owned ferry fleet.'
He said: 'There have been serious mistakes made with Rosa and Sannox but they were not made by the workers. Our yard has been building good ships for more 100 years and, with vision and ambition, we could be building them for 100 more.'
Fergusons failed to win a £175m contract for seven small CalMac ferries awarded to a Polish yard, Remontowa, last month despite the Scots yard building a third of CalMac's current 36-strong fleet.
Logan said: 'In an island nation like Scotland, why is a publicly owned yard not building ships for a publicly owned ferry company?
"Why are ministers in Edinburgh allowing contracts to be sent to Poland when they have a skilled, capable and committed workforce along the M8?
"It is absurd but only the latest example of how our public procurement system works. There is no joined up thinking on our ferries as politicians outsource decisions to unaccountable quangos where islanders and workers struggle to be heard.'
The West Coast ferry network is currently overseen by three organisations, Transport Scotland, acting for the Scottish Government, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), and CalMac but critics claim the system has failed to deliver for islanders or taxpayers.
GMB is calling for a review to establish if ferry operator CalMac should be merged with CMAL, which owns and commissions ferries and terminals, and take sole charge of the fleet while working closely with Fergusons to commission and deliver small ferries.
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STV News
17 hours ago
- STV News
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State-owned ferry operator CalMac has paid out more than £460,000 in compensation to passengers because of delays and cancellations since April last year. The Liberal Democrats said the bill is 'soaring' because ministers at Holyrood had 'let the Scottish ferry network deteriorate', with delays impacting the delivering of planned new vessels. CalMac paid £432,735 in compensation to travellers in 2024-25, with a further £33,792 paid out in May and June this year – the first two months of 2025-26. The compensation bill for last year is up by more than 37% from 2023-24, when CalMac paid out £314,494 – but is still lower than in 2022-23 when payments amounted to £454,000. It comes as the ferry operator, which runs lifeline services to islands on Scotland's west coast, struggles with reliability issues due to its aging fleet of vessels. The Glen Sannox ferry, built by Port Glasgow shipyard Ferguson Marine, was delivered years late and over budget, while sister ship the Glen Rosa is not now due to de delivered until early next year. Liberal Democrat transport spokesman Jamie Greene said: 'The bill for cancellations and compensation is soaring because the SNP have let the Scottish ferry network deteriorate.' Data released to the Liberal Democrats under freedom of information laws show there were 7,058 customer claims made to CalMac in the two years between April 2023 and April 2025. Since 2017-18, the ferry firm has paid out more than £1.9m, with Mr Greene claiming 'massive bills' for compensation and repairs are now the 'grim norm' for the operator. He spoke out on the issue as his party launched its own consultation on the future of the country's ferry services. Lib Dems are appealing to people to have their say on what they believe are the key challenges facing the network, and how these could be addressed. Mr Greene stressed 'hard working' staff at CalMac have been 'let down by an SNP Government that took control of the company and broke their promise to deliver new ferries on time and on budget, which would have reduced the massive bills we are now seeing for compensation and repairs'. PA Media Jamie Greene said CalMac's growing compensation costs are the 'grim norm' . The Liberal Democrat West of Scotland MSP added: 'All of this has created a grim new norm for my constituents along the west coast, from losing business to missing hospital appointments. 'The SNP have caused islanders to lose faith in the entire political system, but Scottish Liberal Democrats want to restore that faith. 'That's why we're listening to everyone who has been messed around. Our consultation is asking for views on how we can secure a better future for Scotland's ferries. 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BBC News
18 hours ago
- BBC News
CalMac pays out £460,000 to delayed ferry passengers
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Daily Mail
a day ago
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