Scottish island ferries debacle. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/foi-eir-release/2023/09/foi-202300367939/documents/foi-202300367939---information-released---part-3/foi-202300367939---information-released---part-3/govscot%3Adocument/FOI%2B202300367939%2B-%2BInformation%2BReleased%2B-%2BPart%2B3.pdf

This document will explain the SEPA results for monitoring Scotlands waterways. Worth reading.
The 4% is only a requirement, obviously not what actually happens.

Aveline, that would be a brilliant topic for another thread. I shall watch out for you posting about it, and will join in.

Back to you Urmstongran. Your concern for the situation in Scotland is laudable, and yes, a good Government will intervene effectively and appropriately. We in the UK will all have that opportunity soon, to vote in the best Government we can. As a point of interest, and going back to the maritime transport theme that you started, what is the Reform UK policy on 'boats'?

Why such a low percentage? The cost of monitoring? Such a low percentage they might as well not bother.

Monica,
You say 'effulgent' and I say 'effluent',
Let's call the whole thing off!
Seriously, why would I pass on such a beautifully timed linguistic gift?

OldFrill, at what point in this thread was anyone boasting about the effluent in Scotland?
I shall now stand by and watch the 'pile on', for you daring to try to deflect from the dreadful sewage situation in England, by referring to that of another country. (Anyone taking part in Saturday's boat race?) You will be accused of being 'petty', at the very least.

Unfortunately Scotland has nothing to brag about as it only monitors 4% of its sewage overflows whereas England monitors 100%
4% gives very little indication of the dirty truth.
waterquality.sas.org.uk/scotland/#:~:text=From%20reported%20data%20we%20do,in%20the%20hundreds%20of%20thousands.

Seems no situation is so bad that Government intervention can't make it worse.

effulgent not effluent.

There's plenty to complain about south of the border but the SNP govt has the money and the responsibility to run the country well enough. Unfortunately for us, the poor Scottish public, they don't. They've made such a mess of so many aspects of life in Scotland that it's hard to know where to start!

You have lost me there Monica, talking about an 'effluent' spirit blessing me. Thought that was happening in the rivers of England. (Top story in the Guardian today.)
Yes, we are an ordinary country, with ordinary wishes. One of those very ordinary wishes is to be independent. Why do you feel so threatened by that? What do you have to lose by helping us towards this very ordinary goal?
Of course I am going to keep pointing out comparisons with Westminster's mistakes. You may not be denying disasters south of the border, but you are in no hurry to mention them, if even to give balance to your criticism of circumstances in my ordinary, relatively effluent free country.
I feel petty, oh so petty, I feel petty, and witty and right.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

'you' refers to Scotland not the poster, except where they are named.

Monica I agree with you. The SNP / Greens will not gain independence by pointing to the mistakes of Westminster and refusing to acknowledge their own errors.

Well said Monica 👏

Well, that's you tellt, Maremia.

Maremia No one denying other disasters over the border. The problem is that the SNP has always been vociferous in claiming the moral high ground, as you are doing and paddyanne does, anbd when you claim the moral high ground, claim how much better Scotland is governed under a devolve SNP government, how everything is so much better run, better managed, less corrupt etc etc, and then come such a cropper.

You are now having to accept, on so many fronts, that you are not the best thing since sliced bread, that no effulgent spirit especially blesses you, but that you are perfectly ordinary country with a perfectly ordinary government that is as capable of making a total b*ggers muddle* of major projects as any other country. It is a big comedown and obviously very hard to accept. You now have to learn that responding by just looking at other people's mistake, gets nobody nowhere and just makes you look petty.

It's being reported that David Tydeman will receive in excess of £100k in severance pay.

The Ardrossan harbour fiasco is as big a farce as the ferries. Ardrossan harbour has to be upgraded to take the new ferries , which are too large to use Ardrossan harbour in its present state. In September 2022 the Scottish Government said that the harbour and port would be ready to take the new ferries …. when they eventually set sail. But at the moment this major upgrade is in limbo and costs are expected to be double. Talk is now that it might be 2026 before Ardrossan harbour is ready.
To add to the fiasco , the catamaran which was chartered to provide extra sailings between Ardrossan and Arran , has now to sail from Troon because the only berth it can use at Ardrossan is out of action. You couldn’t make this up ! Wonder if Nicola will have a chapter devoted to this in her memoirs. I could write a very long story about trying to get off the Isle of Arran for hospital appointments on the mainland or relatives missing flights because they can’t get a ferry off the island.

Yes, I do like a good 'ferry tale', and this one has started well. Build up the drama, identify the baddie, but what's going to be in Chapter 2? A sad story about the Royals, because you need royalty in a ferry tale? I can't match Urmsongran's detail but I'll have a go.
Chapter 2 The disaster of HMS Queen Elizabeth having to pull out of Nato exercises, echoing the breakdown of HMS Prince of Wales, which the year before had to pull out of exercises with the US Navy?
For Chapter 3, we could jump genres, and switch the travel theme to the railways, with 'Thomas The Tanked Engine' or 'The Little Engine that couldn't make it all the way to Manchester', featuring details of the HS2 fiasco, paid for by every single tax payer in the Four Nations.
But we have to finish with a happy ending, and I don't want to spoil Urmsongran's big reveal, about the brand new ferry...but having done your research, you will already know about this.

We should only support our industries if they are capable of doing the job. We should not featherbed and protect failing and incompetent companies on grounds of patriotism.

£400 million of tax payer's money that could have been used in schools, hospitals, roads, house building has been wasted just so the Scots can demonstrate how imcompetent their shipbuilding now is.

OldFrill

The delayed ferries are being built to run on dual fuel LNG/Diesel. The LNG has to be stored at extremely low temperature and they haven't started building the storage facilities yet. Apparently they will have to import the LNG from Qatar and drive it up in tankers from Kent (none of this was taken into account when commissioning the ferries for their "green" credentials")

😱
Blimey, it’s even worse than I thought!

Strange that Germany, France and Italy still manufacture heavy machinery , which we purchase, it’s not all about cheap,Chinese tat.

The delayed ferries are being built to run on dual fuel LNG/Diesel. The LNG has to be stored at extremely low temperature and they haven't started building the storage facilities yet. Apparently they will have to import the LNG from Qatar and drive it up in tankers from Kent (none of this was taken into account when commissioning the ferries for their "green" credentials")

Two more were bought from Turkey. Under budget and in time. No need to buy from China

I would have voted against buying from China or anywhere else we should support our own strategic industries but the total incompetence of handling this contract is staggering.

Ferries are not rocket science, specification is pretty standard, the original budget was likely too low but allow it to escalate to £600m is crazy