The Herald prefers to say CalMac ‘has been forced to bring in a relief vessel’ as if a 34 ferry service with more than 500 sailings a day to more than 30 locations, including some very small islands that in Canada or Greece, would not have a subsidised service at all, is somehow failing, as it manages more than 90% on time for four days and 99% and 98% in the last two.
The relief vessel has been brought in for the Barra to Eriskay crossing. Just how much is it costing, in the first place, to subsidise a regular daily ferry for a population of around 130?
The Herald claims the ‘Scottish Government has now had to charter another vessel’, when the one in question, the MV Loch Brudha is described as a ‘Clyde-based relief small vessel‘ already owned by CalMac. So for ‘charter‘ at an implied extra cost to the taxpayer, read available relief vessel, ready and waiting, and already owned by the company.
Sources:
https://www.calmac.co.uk/calmac-performance-data-browser?date=05%2F07%2F2023
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Loch_Bhrusda
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
Please set out correctly the relationship between CMAL and CalMac. CalMac operate the ferries they do not own ferries; CMAL own the vessels and it is their responsibility to supply ships to CalMac! The vessel is actually named MV Loch Brusdha and is owned by CMAL.
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Are you an agent of the Herald?
Cmal may own the ferries but on whose behalf? Surely only for Calmac!
Do they farm ferries out to bolster Isle of Man passages or Larne crossings?
Get a grip on yourself, or perhaps stop that?
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Thanks, think I get it now.
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Thanks. So would CalMac have to ‘charter’ a ‘relief’ ferry from CMAL?
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The continuing Anglo state propaganda from the Herald amongst others is becoming very tiresome.
Their clear purpose is to maintain Anglo control of Scotland by undermining Scots confidence in themselves and their elected government and services.
It must be very frustrating having to relentlessly expose their nonsense and thank you for your continuing efforts.
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To be fair, the Barra – Eriskay ferry is not intended to serve Eriskay alone (“for a population of around 130”).
Rather it is part of a chain of causeways and ferries that was (with the help of a skelp of EU money) intended to provide connectivity between the populated Hebridean islands.
Eriskay, as has been mentioned in an earlier post, has a causeway to S.Uist
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Thanks, fair.
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“with the help of a skelp of EU money”
Didn’t the UK government create the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to replace such EU funding? Assuming that the funding was used to help subsidise the service, and the funding from UKSPU hasn’t been forthcoming, then the problem could surely be placed at the door of Number 10…
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That would seem fair.
Not sure why I seem unable to ‘like’ comments here, it maywotk better after posting this (if successful, as the system might reconnise me then!
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It’s a sign of the Heralds desperation that it now has to print outlandish rubbish in order to be “subsidised” by outside interests to keep going. An commentator used the expression “Prostitute Itself”, in an earlier posting on TuS to better describe the Heralds actions and what they had sadly become.
The Herald has no intention of being a proper newspaper anymore and combined with it’s continued falling circulation, it’s really “pushing the boat out” to even call itself a newspaper!
Or should that be a “ferry”.
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Are you an agent of the Herald?
Cmal may own the ferries but on whose behalf? Surely only for Calmac!
Do they farm ferries out to bolster Isle of Man passages or Larne crossings?
Get a grip on yourself, or perhaps stop that?
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I could be very wrong here, but did CMAL not take on the running of the Argyll & Bute Council ferries a few years back?
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Like the Herald, I don’t have a scooby! 😋
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If you do not understand the relationship between CMAL and CalMac your comment is likely to be nearer to the Herald than mine. It is not difficult, use Google and Wiki and go on the company websites to find out the facts!
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The business arrangements surrounding CalMac’s operations are irrelevant to the fact that a solution to the problem which arose was quickly derived.
The greater problem is the Herald et al attempting to continue their propaganda campaign over CalMac with any straw they can clutch at.
eg When the Herald ran a poll on breaking up CalMac, it colossally backfired with a massive majority against breakup – The poll results were quietly disappeared.
– You could be forgiven for thinking that public opinion on the ‘ferry fiasco’ would be newsworthy, when it is not so for the Herald we’re in “the news where we are” territory…..
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