Hyslop defending CalMac's record repair bill is a real ferry fiasco |
Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop is left to defend the indefensible over record ferry repair bill, caused primarily by the Government she serves, argues Herald columnist Alan Simpson
I recently had the grave misfortune of having to put the car into a garage for some rather urgent repairs.
It was the sort of repair job that had the mechanic blowing out his cheeks, shaking his head sadly and then calling in a priest to deliver the last rites.
To say the bill was steep is an understatement but at least it’s back on the road, which I suppose is something.
As everyone knows, the older something gets than the more repairs it will need and the cost of these will rise accordingly.
So spare a thought for the good folks at CalMac who have been hit with a larger bill than most in recent years due to an ageing fleet.
NASA probably spends less on patching things up than the ferry operator.
It all came to head last week when Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop was forced to defend the £260million spent on repairs in the last 11 years.
She was challenged at the Scottish Parliament about the soaring costs of repairs and maintenance after it was revealed it had doubled in just two years.
Bizarrely, the bill was revealed as the newest vessel, MV Glen Sannox which arrived 12 months ago, seven years late, will be out of action for months for urgent fixes.
The upkeep bill hit an unprecedented £50.1m in 2024/25, compared with £25m two years earlier — a surge that campaigners have raised concerns about as ferries grow older, less reliable and increasingly expensive to run.
'Farce, again': Major CalMac ferry is sidelined 'indefinitely' after £11m of repairs
'National embarrassment': CalMac ferry to be out of action for nearly two years