The costs for the works is expected to cost around 1.4bn plan but it is estimated to soar with inflation after many years of under-investment. contact IPSO here, 2001-2023. The company provides lifeline services to 23 islands off the west coast of Scotland, as well as operating routes in the Firth of Clyde. Twice and thrice - 1982; 1988; 1994 - the Tories tried, and failed, to find an alternative to nationalised CalMac operations. Leaked dossier suggests Scottish ferry deal may have been rigged Repairs were carried out on the MV Caledonian Isles after an engine failure, The Glen Sannox's construction at Ferguson's shipyard has been troubled, An impression of one of new ferries being built for the Islay route, Privately-run Pentland Ferries has successfully used catamarans to and from Orkney for years, In Denmark, fully-electric ferries are already sailing but only on relatively short routes, Islands like Iona are seeing visitor numbers pick up again, Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims. [18] Her design allows her to make the crossing in reverse when sea conditions allow.[18]. In 2019, the shipyard went back into administration and was nationalised after ministers rejected a last-ditch offer from Mr McColl to split the cost of completing the two ferries, claiming this would breach EU state aid rules. We're reminded of the stushie surrounding Dr Mills's 1999 appointment, and that Mr Sinclair used to run Ailsa Shipbuilding at Troon - ''main supplier of ferries for CalMac''; the company folded shortly after he assumed his Gourock post. She has the capacity for 100 passengers. CalMac said told The Herald: "Our team is working hard to provide alternative solutions. CalMac says its maintenance budget has risen by 67% over the past five years, with a projected spend of 34.2m in 2022. Do ferry companies have to refund? - gbmov.dixiesewing.com MV Loch Seaforth. "There is no milk produced locally. Others have urged CMAL to consider using catamarans, arguing they require smaller engines yet can carry similar numbers of vehicles at a substantially lower cost. She is instead used mostly for goods and vital equipment for the islands. More than seven years later those ships, Glen Sannox and the as yet un-named hull 802, are still under construction at the now-nationalised Ferguson shipyard in Port Glasgow. Caledonian MacBrayne (Calmac) vessels can be readily identified by their black hulls and white superstructures. An investigation found a failure to replace piston screws during scheduled maintenance may have been to blame. Find out more about Safer Travel with CalMac. "However, the meeting left CalMac and Transport Scotland in no doubt that the current situation is unendurable," he said. Can Nigeria's election result be overturned? The melodramatic claim that CalMac has lost ''25% of passengers in a decade'' does not fully explain that, since 1995, CalMac has lost its ferry services to Skye, Scalpay, and Bernera (thanks to bridges and a causeway); abandoned summer cruises on the Clyde, and between Mallaig and Kyle of Lochalsh; and been forced, with the big new Outer Isles boat, to abandon calls at Tobermory on Mull. 'For god's sake do something': Food rationing fury as islanders blame These vessels usually operate on longer crossings, with high passenger numbers. Why the facts sink this bizarre CalMac attack | HeraldScotland Duncan Hamilton says he has not spoken to Kerevan for at least three months. A Transport Scotland spokesman said: CalMac forms part of the local resilience partnership. The BBC documentary, however, uncovered evidence of a number of irregularities: The Port Glasgow shipyard fell into administration in August 2014, but was bought a week before the independence referendum by Jim McColl, a businessman who sat on First Minister Alex Salmond's council of economic advisers. CMAL said in a statement that new information contained in the programme would need to be "carefully investigated". [9], From 2002, the service to Dunoon was supplemented by passenger catamaran MVAli Cat, owned by Solent and Wightline Cruises and chartered by CalMac from Red Funnel Line. The Mull and Iona Ferry Committee has urged Transport Scotland to buy MV Pentalina. The current chief executive of CMAL, Kevin Hobbs, declined to be interviewed and when confronted by BBC Disclosure about the findings, made no comment. Islanders' anger at wider ferry disruption. Kerevan quotes Captain Norman Martin's testimony to the Scottish Parliament's transport committee, but neglects to explain the context to Martin's seemingly damning remarks on company profit motive: he was outlining the huge burden on CalMac's resources imposed by new, ferocious Maritime and Coastguard. Last year the Scottish government promised 580m of investment in Scotland's ferry network over the next five years - about half of it for new ships - but some claim, given the scale of the problem, that's nowhere near enough. She is operated by Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac), which runs ferries to the Hebridean and Clyde Islands of Scotland. [11] From 30 June 2011, the Gourock - Dunoon service was awarded on a passenger-only basis to the newly formed David MacBrayne Ltd subsidiary Argyll Ferries. Caledonian Isles serves the Isle of Arran on the Ardrossan to Brodick route. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter'. The group said on Thursday in a message to CalMac's managing director Robbie Drummond and Ms Gilruth: "Maybe the plan is that without visitors we wont need many supplies. The deal to build two new CalMac ferries for Arran and the Hebrides has run into serious trouble. The car deck incorporates a set of mezzanine decks, one down each side of the central casing and each divided into three sections. Editors' Code of Practice. Another islander Tullula Tia said: "It's shocking. The shipyard was allowed to significantly change its design halfway through the tender by developing a variant mentioned but discounted in its original submission. inaccuracy or intrusion, then please Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Loudwater Mill, Station Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. [6] See also ferry fiasco for the political controversies surrounding the construction of these units. Maybe that is something we should look at as we seem to be isolated from the rest of Scotland. Edward Mountain, who was convener of a Holyrood committee that looked into the ferries scandal two years ago, told the programme he had "real concerns" that MSPs "haven't been told the whole truth about what happened in this procurement process". . Vessels are owned by the asset holding company Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited, which is in turn wholly owned by the Scottish Government. After a month the Caithness linkspan was destroyed by gales; the affair finally cost islanders some (pounds) 7m. [8] The new terminal has two ferry berths: the west side berth and the east side berth. Editors' Code of Practice. . Government-owned ferries agency CMAL defended the procurement and said an audit in 2018 found "no adverse issues". CalMac is conducting its own internal inquiry and said the. We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse. CalMac is ''renowned for its high prices, uncomfortable boats, and disregard for customers . Such craft are prohibitively expensive to fuel, cause dangerous ''superwaves'' in enclosed waters, and could never manage the exposed seas of Hebridean winter. A 105m order for the next two big ships - for the Islay route - has now been signed with a Turkish shipyard and, if all goes to plan, they should be delivered in 2024/2025. Even the newer ships have had breakdowns - CalMac's biggest ship MV Loch Seaforth, built in 2014, was out of action for weeks last year due to engine damage, with knock-on effects hitting many other services. Islanders from Arran to Islay have lodged complaints. It would be interesting to see Kerevan's obsession with the profit-motive applied, say, to the police, or our prisons, or the armed forces. At 30.2m (99ft 1in) in length, they can carry 12 cars and 200 passengers. These vessels usually operate on the longer crossings, with high passenger numbers. We need to do something different, because the government isn't interested in helping us. why; as on last Wednesday, our attention was drawn to an astonishing onslaught on ferry operator Caledonian MacBrayne. But those "green" claims are questionable - LNG is still a fossil fuel, and it has to be imported from Qatar before being driven hundreds of miles from Kent to Scotland. A mere 7cm (3in) shorter, MVLoch Fyne and MVLoch Dunvegan were built for the Skye crossing. Announcements that Caledonian MacBrayne ferries have been withdrawn from service for repairs are becoming an increasingly common occurrence. has a calmac ferry ever sunk. John Kerr, a former CalMac technical director who was asked to review some of the leaked documents, was surprised Ferguson was then allowed to submit a revised, far lighter design after the tender deadline, describing it as effectively "a new bid". MV Clansman has recently had problems recently with a bow thruster, used for manoeuvring. The company, based in Drumchapel, has reportedly ceased all trading with its annual results currently overdue by more than two months. Nor does Kerevan tell us CalMac has been long forbidden freely to compete on the Dunoon route. The passenger accommodation is similar to that onboard the Mull ship. For the latest politics news, click here. [5], Due to the demand for capacity, a second ferry has supplemented Caledonian Isles during the summer season since 2005. "We will be looking at the substance of the allegations raised around procurement by the programme before deciding whether further audit work is required," it said. I have a baby who is now on cows milk but Im only able to do my shopping once a week due to having three kids on my own while my partner works. [12], In April 2022, Caledonian Isles suffered a port engine failure and struck the breakwater. The last sailing from the old Brodick pier was the 0820 to Ardrossan on Tuesday 20 March 2018. "You would think they can just put another ferry on but then they say they can't, just suck it up. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Over 60s discount | FAQs | CalMac Ferries Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours. History. Read about our approach to external linking. Scottish Government-controlled ferry operator Calmac were forced to make moves to provide an emergency ferry from one of Scotlands busiest routes to Mull to serve the stricken islands in the Outer Hebrides. Back in 2015, the 97m order was seen as a lifeline for Ferguson shipyard in Port Glasgow - the. Deputy First Minister John Swinney said the information presented by BBC Disclosure would be investigated further. For the new Islay ferries, CMAL has ditched LNG in favour of mainly diesel ships with "fuel efficient hulls" and some electric power options while manoeuvring in port. Jim McColl believes the ferries will cost at least 300m and ferry expert Roy Pederson says it would be better to scrap them and start again. As the third-largest vessel in the fleet, she brought new levels of capacity and passenger comfort to the routes. Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) provide answers to many common questions about booking and travelling, including information around routes, vehicles, children, dogs, online bookings and refunds. This caused significant disruption to the Arran service, with all vehicle bookings cancelled and a significant reduction in capacity. Scottish Government-controlled ferry operator Calmac were forced to make moves to provide an emergency ferry from one of Scotland's busiest routes to Mull to serve the stricken islands in the . On Friday it emerged the government faces a 5million bill after losing a High Court case related to takeover of Ferguson's. Meanwhile, a contract to deliver MV Glen Sannox and a sister ferry in 2018 won't now be completed until 2023 with costs doubling to 200million. [1] Now[when? We are lucky at The Herald. Kerevan does not include in his report quotes from CalMac's managers or officials. Readers comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. She is a double-ender ferry with passenger capacity for 195, and capacity for 40 cars, or 4 HGVs. CalMac's European problem is scarcely news, and for the assertion that the company - or future private operators - have been promised a public-money honeypot of a third of a billion pounds, Kerevan tenders no evidence whatever. Under the law, refunds must be provided within seven days but given the unprecedented effects of coronavirus, we advise allowing ferry companies more time to process refunds.