To ask the Scottish Government when it or its agencies next plan to build CalMac ferries in Scotland. (S6O-04509)

We intend to invest more than £530 million in ferry services, vessels and infrastructure as part of the budget for 2025-26, and we are looking to complete procurement of a further three major vessels within the next year. That is in addition to the seven small vessels on which we expect Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd to move to contract award very shortly.

Under the procurement rules that were set by the Conservative United Kingdom Government through the Subsidy Control Act 2022 and the Procurement Act 2023, the direct award of public contracts is possible only in strictly limited circumstances. Ministers will consider future vessel contracts from public agencies on a case-by-case basis to determine whether any might legally be open to direct award.

I thank the cabinet secretary for that response, and I convey my thoughts to members of the front bench for carrying on their business as normal. I know that it must be a difficult day for the cabinet secretary and her colleagues, and I want to express that personally.

I also want to convey my thanks to Ferguson Marine’s new chief executive, Graeme Thomson, and the outgoing chief executive, John Petticrew, who I know was a passionate advocate for ferry building and shipyards on the Clyde. Of course, the news about the small vessel replacement programme is disappointing, but we all have a shared ambition to see the yard flourish in the future. Can we look forward to some good news for Ferguson’s and its workers, and to seeing more CalMac ferries being built in Port Glasgow and on the Clyde, which is a shared ambition of all of us?

I very much appreciate the concern for us that the member expressed. Christina McKelvie was a beautiful and compassionate force of nature.

I agree with the member’s thanks to the outgoing chief executive and his welcome for the new chief executive, who was also welcomed by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic when the announcement was made.

The role of Government in that space is to continue to support and invest in Ferguson’s, as has been announced. As the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, my role lies in the procurement space. Given that investment has been secured for a further three major vessels and that SVRP 2 will come on stream, it is clear that there is a firm future for the procurement of ships and vessels for our island communities.

In structuring the tendering procedure for phase 2 of the small vessel replacement programme, would the cabinet secretary consider ensuring that there is a minimum social value weighting of at least 10 per cent, in line with procurement practices in other parts of the United Kingdom? If so, would that weighting be likely to include a UK work share in the contract? Will the cabinet secretary also think about whether we can structure shipyards or shipbuilding facilities in Scotland as common user facilities, so that any tenderer, anywhere in the world, can include in their bid an intention to use a UK or Scottish shipyard for the purpose of fulfilling the contract?

I listened carefully to the member when he made similar remarks in the chamber recently.

We are guided by the existing procurement rules and I will take advice from CMAL, as appropriate, at each phase. The positive news is the level of investment that we have to take forward the procurement. I am cognisant of the remarks that the member has made not only today but previously.