THERE surely has to be more clarity over the £15 million loan, then a further £30 million loan from the Government to Ferguson Marine Engineering, especially as the Monaco-based owner sits on the First Minister's Council of Economic Advisors ("Storm blowing up over £45m loan given to struggling shipyard", The Herald, September 19). I remember Jim McColl being then correctly described as the "white knight" riding to the rescue of Ferguson Marine in 2014 and within a year being awarded the contract to build two ferries for Calmac. It did strike me that it was odd that the Government felt it was unable to financially assist the previous company which had struggled for years due to the EU tendering process and then be able to give a two-vessel contract so quickly to the new owner.
Immediately after Mr McColl's assurance that all was well and the vessels would be delivered on time, it appears that all was not well. It seems that the design, mainly the propulsion system, was to be only finalised when at least one ship was still on the stocks, certainly the certification problems were not identified and even now it seems not rectified.
This caused such financial stress that necessitated an emergency loan of £15 million that was immediately used to stave off possible closure and then a further loan of £30 million to allegedly further "engineering diversity". When this news was released I recall wondering why this company was able to benefit from such public largesse.
That Mr McColl is one of Scotland's most successful businessmen is not in question. Nevertheless there must be an official public explanation into how the last yard on the lower Clyde has needed an injection of £45 million of scarce public money to keep itself afloat and the conduct of Derek Mackay in misleading the public as to the correct reason for the loans.
R. Johnston,
3 Barcapel Avenue, Glasgow.
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