'The buck must stop with Swinney' for £460m ferry fiasco

JOHN SWINNEY has been challenged to take responsibility for the ferry fiasco that has left taxpayers footing a bill of nearly half a billion pounds.

- Douglas Dickie

Glen Rosa was due to be handed over by nationalised Ferguson Marine yard in September but it could now be June 2026 before CalMac receives the vessel.

When the deal was signed off in 2015, two new ferries were due to cost £97million and be in service within four years. The Glen Sannox finally began sailing on the busy Arran route in January. And substantial delays caused by chaos at the yard are now thought to have driven costs up to more than £460m.

Repairs

Meanwhile, it emerged that operator CalMac — which is also in public hands — has been forced to fork out £250m in repairs to its ageing fleet over the past decade.

At First Minister’s Questions yesterday, the SNP leader was told he and his party was to blame for a “lost decade” for islanders and ferry passengers.

Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay said: “Scotland’s taxpayers are footing the SNP’s bill for the ferries scandal they created. John Swinney can’t even say what the final cost will be to taxpayers for the corrupt ferry contract that he personally signed off.