Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has and will provide funding to support the chartering of suitable vessels to assist resilience on our ferry networks, as demonstrated by the current charter of MV Arrow by CalMac Ferries Ltd.

Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) and CalMac Ferries Ltd continually search the market for suitable second-hand tonnage.

Transport Scotland (TS) have weekly discussions with CalMac Ferries to identify where improvements can be made to enhance the resilience of the services across the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service (CHFS) which includes those services to the Western Isles. This includes searching for opportunities to charter additional tonnage for the fleet.

Ministers are pleased that following successful berthing trials the MV Arrow has been chartered. This will bring additional capacity on the Ullapool – Stornoway service by allowing CalMac to free up the MV Loch Seaforth to let more passengers and their vehicles travel. It will also increase freight capacity.

The Scottish Government are fully committed to maintaining life line ferry services across the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS) network. When periods of inclement weather are anticipated CalMac will seek to try and flex the scheduled ferry service timetable to provide sailings in advance of, or following any disruption to the timetabled services, to try and minimise the impact on communities.

CMAL are regularly contacted by 7 core shipbrokers who bring to their attention vessels that may be suitable for Scottish routes. This is due to the international standard that the broker takes a fee from the seller should a vessel be purchased.

CMAL have frequent and regular engagement with 7 core shipbrokers who assist with the identification of vessels that may be suitable for Scottish ferry routes.

Ferguson Marine are no longer involved in the HySeas III project. Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) have however joined the consortium as a new partner to carry out the review of existing work and design a ferry, from the statement of requirements through to classification approval.

When considering a vessel, CMAL review a number of elements to assess suitability for Scottish ferry routes including vessel dimensions, speed and displacement, as well as the vehicle deck garage heights, loading system (ramps), shore side interfaces, compliance with the Maritime Coastguard Agency Regulations and the vessel’s suitability for Scottish waters.

CMAL do not disclose the names of either the vessels it assesses or their ownership. This is due to the possible impact upon the market value of the vessel should it become apparent that a government body is considering their purchase, which could result in the price going up and making it harder to achieve Value for Money for the Scottish tax payer.

The Scottish Government have had no discussions with Seatruck Ferries regarding the time charter of additional tonnage for the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS) network. All discussions have been undertaken by CalMac Ferries Ltd.

Provision of services by a Scottish Government owned company, called ScotRail Trains Ltd, in line with our Operator of Last Resort duty will ensure the continuity of rail services in Scotland and also provide stability to staff, suppliers and passengers over this period.

Abellio ScotRail staff with their terms and conditions will transfer to the new entity.

The South West Scotland Breast Screening Clinic does not accept GP referrals. Patients are referred to the clinic through the national screening programme, therefore this data is not available. The clinic does track the waiting time from initial screening to assessment. In May, the wait to assessment was 100% by week 3.

Housing to 2040 is Scotland’s first ever long-term national housing strategy and makes clear our ambition to deliver 100,000 affordable homes by 2031-32, 70% of which will be for Social Rent.

Local authorities as the statutory housing authority are responsible for assessing housing requirements in their area and setting out their plans to meet these requirements as part of their Local Housing Strategy and Strategic Housing Investment Plan.