Would Anas Sarwar prefer we gave that £1bn ferry spend to loan companies, for shareholder dividends and in exec bonuses instead of investing in state-of-the-art ferries built in Scotland?
Professor John Robertson OBA
In Tory Lord Ashcroft’s Holyrood Mag today and being spread over the other media:
SNP has presided over ‘£1bn ferry fiasco’ says Anas Sarwar – The Scottish Labour leader said the SNP “cannot be trusted with the public’s money” at the weekly FMQs session. But First Minister John Swinney said there were “stringent controls over government finances”, as he pointed to the delivery of balanced budgets each year since his party took office. He was under fire from both main opposition party leaders after it was revealed the cost of the two new ferries for the Clyde and Hebrides route would be over £460m – far higher than the original £97m price tag.
There has been a massive price hike and over-run in this project to build these two new, large, complex, hybrid ferries. The then owner of Ferguson Marine clearly put in an unrealistic bid to get the contract knowing well, from previous projects, that’s what you do to get the work and then revisit the costs and timing later once you have it.
Money has been wasted and delays are frustrating but, in the end, the Scottish taxpayers get two fantastic vessels and the in-house expertise to develop the yard. See:
What else could have happened? Something like this? Millions wasted in loan payments so that you can reward shareholders and execs without so much as even considering buying new ferries.
The Isle of Wight’s ferry services are in the spotlight, as IW East MP, Joe Robertson, voices serious concern about Wightlink’s finances.
The firm’s CEO, Katy Taylor, has sparked questions, after failing to deny claims that the company’s owners plan to take £30 million out of the business, leaving Islanders to wonder what impact it would have on already sky-high fares.
The IW Observer asked Mrs Taylor this week about reports that Wightlink’s shareholders are close to finalising a deal that would see the company saddled with an additional £60 million in debt. We received information that Wightlink’s owners, Basalt Infrastructure Partners and Fiera Infrastructure, have earmarked £30 million for a new ferry, with the other £30 million going straight to shareholder pockets.
Mr Robertson said: “If these reports are untrue, then Mrs Taylor should have been able to deny them. It would be immoral for a ferry company to borrow millions of pounds to pay to shareholders while regularly charging passengers over £300 for a return trip across the Solent with an ever-diminishing timetable.”
10 thoughts on “Would Anas Sarwar prefer we gave that £1bn ferry spend to loan companies, for shareholder dividends and in exec bonuses instead of investing in state-of-the-art ferries built in Scotland?”
Anas is hanging by the phone, just waiting for his masters voice telling him what to say. As long as it contains the magic words “new direction” then it will be just fine.
By far the greatest fiasco has been the political shit show made of it in Scotland’s media, with suspicious links to the business community.
But ‘presided over‘ ? – Once the contract is awarded, the costs are out of the funder’s hands as Contract Law takes over – Even were SG to pull the plug on financing the project, the penalties as well as legal costs arising would be eye-watering.
Cost overruns and delays have nothing whatever to do with the party in power, they are a ‘political embarrassment’, which should rightly be renamed a ‘Sarwar’.
Well said Bob, but as all on here know, any matter which the media think damages the S.G, and by association, our cause for Independence, is fair game.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
It depends.
What would westminster prefer to be done?
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Anas is hanging by the phone, just waiting for his masters voice telling him what to say. As long as it contains the magic words “new direction” then it will be just fine.
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as Sarwar spends all his time waiting to hear His Master’s Voice, should he be more correctly named and referred to as “Nipper”?
Nipper Sarwar has a ring to it.
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Aye. its a dogs life in politics these days..
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I see what you’re doing with that big red bow thing! 😂😂😂😂
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S’ferries, innit?
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By far the greatest fiasco has been the political shit show made of it in Scotland’s media, with suspicious links to the business community.
But ‘presided over‘ ? – Once the contract is awarded, the costs are out of the funder’s hands as Contract Law takes over – Even were SG to pull the plug on financing the project, the penalties as well as legal costs arising would be eye-watering.
Cost overruns and delays have nothing whatever to do with the party in power, they are a ‘political embarrassment’, which should rightly be renamed a ‘Sarwar’.
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Well said Bob, but as all on here know, any matter which the media think damages the S.G, and by association, our cause for Independence, is fair game.
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The ferries that could be built instead of Trident and redundant weaponry.
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THIS ASHTON CHARACTER SHOULD HANG HIS HEADHI PARTY HAVE “ROBBED’ THE PUBLIC PURSE DURING AND AFTER COVId
THEY HAVE NO MORAL OR LEGAL RIGHTS
TO CAST ASPERSIONS ON SCOTLANDS LEADING POLITICAL PARTY
HIS PARTY HAVE FOR THE PAST 20 YEARS STRIPPED MILLIONS
FROM BRITAINS COFFERS AND BLATANTLY BLAMED SNP
COME ON SCOTS CARCH A BLOODY GRIP
YOU ARE BEING FLEECED OPENLY
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