1. To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd should still accept into service the Glen Sannox and 802 ferries, in light of reports that they no longer meet the original basic design criteria. (S6T-01569)

Any further delay to the delivery of those lifeline vessels is extremely disappointing, and we have made that clear to the yard.

CMAL will accept delivery of the vessels only after it receives the required sign-off from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the class society. CMAL has been clear, along with CalMac Ferries and Transport Scotland, that all systems, including liquefied natural gas, will be commissioned before handover from Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow. The recent update from the chief executive officer of the yard set out the work and timelines on that basis.

The reduced passenger capacity noted in the update from the yard is expected to be formally accepted through appropriate contract amendments.

It is interesting that, of the seven original bids to build the ships, those from shipyards C and D were not accepted because they did not meet the requirement to carry 1,000 passengers and 127 cars or 16 big lorries.

We know that the latest recommendation will result in capacity for 15 per cent fewer passengers. How many fewer cars and how many fewer lorries will there be?

My understanding—I will stand to be corrected if I am incorrect—is that there will be no impact on the vehicle aspects. On the passenger aspects, there are regular meetings to plot peak demand on the routes that the vessels will serve. There has been agreement on the compromises that have had to be made on the issues that the Maritime and Coastguard Agency raised. Addressing that is the direct responsibility of the contractor, which is Ferguson Marine.

Islanders have not accepted that there will be fewer passengers. We are in the current position because Ferguson Marine spoke to the MCA only in June this year about whether the boats would meet the specification that the MCA had set out, which is based on regulations that date from 2016. We have late ferries that are under capacity, over budget and not what islanders were promised. Are you happy with that as a Minister?

I ask members to always speak through the chair.

As the Minister for Transport, my responsibility is to represent the interests of islanders, many of whom I have met over the summer. They want to have resilience in the fleet. They want not just two ferries but all six ferries. The six ferries, which will be completed by 2026, will provide resilience in the fleet.

What islanders do not want is speculative headlines that undermine the understanding that the vast Majority of ferries in Scotland run to time, that far more passengers are being carried than ever before and that there are far more routes than ever before. Such headlines do not help when there are issues and when we are going into a dry-dock period, which will put more pressure on the system. I want to make sure that all six ferries are in place—then I will be happy, Mr Mountain.

Deng Xiaoping, who was paramount leader of China for more than a decade, said:

“It doesn’t matter if a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice.”

Does the Minister agree that what is important to islanders at this point is not so much the ferry design as the fact that the vessels that are under construction in Port Glasgow can join the fleet and begin serving our island communities at the earliest possible date?

The member reflects his constituents’ interests, which have been relayed to me directly in the meetings that I have had with them. It is the contractor’s responsibility to meet the MCA’s requirements. That is an iterative process. I know that Mr Mountain has an interest in that as convener of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee and that he has asked the Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy a number of questions. That letter is due to be responded to by Friday, and the response will be shared with the rest of Parliament.

The last time that the price of the ferries mushroomed, I asked whether any Minister would lose their job. So far, no one has paid the price. There are more delays and higher costs today, so I ask again—will any minister pay the price for this fiasco?

Clearly, the difficulties that the yard has faced and that the contracts have faced have been absolutely laid bare for everyone to see. The recognition of the responsibilities of everyone concerned has been relayed. As the Minister for Transport, my role is to represent islanders’ interests in relation to tourism and freight and to make sure that we have in place responsive systems.

I have direct responsibility for CMAL and CalMac; I do not have direct responsibility for the Ferguson yard. However, in making sure that we have a yard that can face the future, we will be standing by its workforce. I distinctly remember certain people, not least from the member’s party, who called for that requirement at the time when those contracts were awarded.