Meeting of the Parliament [Draft]

Meeting date: Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Official Report 1290KB pdf

---

Topical Question Time

---

MV Glen Sannox and MV Glen Rosa (Delivery update)

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the delivery of the MV Glen Sannox and MV Glen Rosa, in light of reports that a senior programme director has been removed from the project. (S6T-02059)

The Scottish Government was informed on 19 June by Ferguson Marine that the ship delivery director’s contract had been terminated as a result of a breakdown in trust. That is wholly a decision for Ferguson Marine. I can, however, confirm that the interim chief executive officer of Ferguson Marine provided his most recent update on MV Glen Sannox in a letter to the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee on 31 May 2024, in which he states that the yard is working

“to achieve the handover date of 31st July 2024.”

The phrase “breakdown in trust” is interesting. There has been an awful lot of trust broken between our island communities and the Government, unfortunately. This latest loss of expertise, right at the very top of the yard, comes just three months after Ferguson’s well-respected chief executive was also unceremoniously sacked from his position. Why are the relationships breaking down in the yard? That is helping nobody, not least the workers in the yard.

David Tydeman was apparently sacked on the grounds of poor performance, but I think that everybody knows the truth: it is more likely that he was sacked from his position because he was simply speaking uncomfortable truth to power about this whole sorry saga. What our islanders and the workers at the Ferguson Marine yard deserve is some straight-talking truth from ministers and not bad news that is going to be snuck out after recess.

Let me ask specifically, in case it was not clear the first time round, will the MV Glen Sannox be delivered to Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd by the end of July—yes or no?

In the past few weeks, I have met the chair and the chief executive. I have made my expectations very clear to them, and both of them have confirmed to me that they see no change to the commitment to deliver the vessel by the end of July. Obviously, the chief executive will continue to keep the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee informed but, certainly, face to face in those conversations and publicly in the written letters that he has issued to the relevant committee, he has made clear the commitment to meet the 31 July deadline.

I am sorry to say this to the cabinet secretary but, knowing that this topical question was coming up in the chamber today, should she not have picked up the phone and spoken to the chief executive to get an update on the status of the ships today, rather than basing her answer on a letter from weeks ago? The situation is not good enough for our island communities. The vessels are nearly six years late and they are approaching £0.5 billion in cost, with the figure still rising. All the while, the yard has no certainty over its long-term future. The phrase that is being used by workers at the yard is that time is running out. They are absolutely right: time is running out for the yard.

When will the Government make a decision on the small vessel replacement programme? When on earth will the Government finally get a grip of the endless disruption that our islands face as a result of this whole sorry saga?

The member will know that I said just a matter of days after coming into office that we expected that decision to be announced imminently. A few days later, the member’s boss—the Prime Minister—called an election and we have since been tied up with purdah, unable to make public announcements. We hope to be in a position to make a public announcement as soon as we are permitted to do so.

It is important to remember that the key reason why the Scottish Government stepped in to save Ferguson Marine was to protect jobs in an area of high deprivation and unemployment. Can the cabinet secretary give details on how many people have been employed since then? How have local businesses benefited? How many young people have secured apprenticeships at the yard?

Stuart McMillan has been a long-standing advocate for the yard and for the local community, both of which are a priority for the Government. Currently, 288 staff are employed at the shipyard. Since the shipyard became publicly owned, 72 apprentices have been employed, with two thirds of those remaining with the yard after completing their apprenticeships. Recently, one of the yard’s young female apprentices won the Scottish engineering graduate apprentice of the year award, which is a fantastic achievement that highlights the commitment of the business to developing future talent.

The Deputy First Minister will be aware of the anger and distress on Arran and other islands, given the delays and the unreliability of the ferry service. Workers at Ferguson Marine are in a similar position. Last year, the then chief executive officer warned that urgent investment was needed by last Christmas to enable essential reconfiguration at the site. We are very much aware that the Deputy First Minister took part in a summit, but can she give an update, given that the investment is both urgent and essential?

There was a lot in Katy Clark’s question—including islanders, future investment and workers at the yard. Let me take them one at a time.

First, we recognise the impact on Arran residents. The Cabinet Secretary for Transport has stressed to CalMac that everything must be done to address capacity and provide assurances for the community as we approach the peak summer season.

We have been progressing work in relation to the request for investment at the yard. When I met representatives of the unions at the beginning of May, we said that the outcome of that due diligence work was due in a matter of days, and that was true at the time. I am very keen to be in a position to publicly announce what we will be able to do next, and I look forward to being out of purdah in order to do that.

The Deputy First Minister talks about trust. She seems to be trusting the board and the chief executive an awful lot in this circumstance. Those are the people who got rid of the two widely respected individuals who were brought in to rescue the project when it fell apart some years ago. How does the Deputy First Minister have that confidence? What steps has she taken to get the expertise, from outside the Government and beyond, to know that those are the right steps—especially as Mr Crossan has returned to CMAL? He is not discredited; he still has his job. Why has that happened, and what is the Deputy First Minister going to do about it?

There are a number of different points here. On the matter of getting the expertise, we have taken steps to ensure that we have as much expertise as possible when it comes to informing our decision. For example, in my answer to Katy Clark, I was talking about getting the right due diligence on the investment work that is required. CMAL has indicated that it will continue to lend full support to Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow to deliver the MV Glen Sannox. It will utilise other members of the technical team where appropriate, as we are all committed to delivering the Glen Sannox according to schedule.

I am keen to take further supplementary questions from members, but I would be grateful if questions were concise.

I was in Arran on Sunday, and there are real concerns there about vessel capacity. Arran is struggling with the capacity constraints that have been caused by repairs to the MV Caledonian Isles, which are taking it out of service. Can the cabinet secretary give an update on on-going work to bring that vessel back into service urgently? With the Arran farmers show and Brodick highland games taking place in early August, how will CalMac ensure that the island has adequate capacity as summer progresses?

The member is right to raise that. We see the significant impact on Arran residents, communities and businesses of the reduced capacity of the ferry to Arran following the outage of the MV Caledonian Isles for essential steelwork repairs. The Cabinet Secretary for Transport has been communicating with CalMac to try to get everything done as quickly as possible so as to address capacity and provide assurances. She is getting regular updates on when the vessel will return to service, and we understand from CalMac that that is currently expected in August. Interim arrangements are currently in place to help with capacity, with MV Alfred operating on the Arran route and additional crew being available to maximise the vessel’s passenger capacity throughout this period.

What led to the breakdown in trust between the board and the programme director?

The decision was taken entirely by Ferguson Marine and its board. In terms of moving forward, CMAL has committed to continue to work with Ferguson Marine to ensure that both vessels are delivered as quickly as possible. As the decision was taken by the board, it would be appropriate for the board, rather than Scottish ministers, to speak to the situation.

Is it not the case that this chairman, who has no shipbuilding experience, is repeatedly sacking those who do have it for telling him uncomfortable truths about the operational realities of delivering a highly complex programme that is on track—as it has been for months—for handover this summer? That has not changed. All that has changed is that the chairman seems to be carrying out a face-saving exercise on the operational workforce, which is leading the project as best it can.

I have confidence in the chair of Ferguson Marine and in the chief executive to deliver the work that has been set out. Having met them individually very recently, as well as the chief financial officer, I have made my expectations clear and they have provided me with assurances. The chief executive is also aware that he is under parliamentary scrutiny and answerable to the Scottish Parliament committee. He will provide his next quarterly update to that committee.

---

Linwood Industrial Estate Fire

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported public safety and environmental concerns arising from the fire at Linwood industrial estate on 23 June. (S6T-02058)

I thank the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service crews, along with all our emergency services, for their sterling efforts in tackling the large and complex fire that broke out at the Enva recycling facility on Sunday. At its height, 10 appliances and 50 firefighters were at the scene. Thankfully, there were no casualties and, as of this morning, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has confirmed that one fire appliance and one height appliance remain in attendance, with firefighters working to eliminate any remaining hot spots and dampen down.

As a precaution, early yesterday morning local residents were advised to remain indoors with windows and doors shut. That advice was lifted later yesterday morning. As part of a multi-agency response, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is actively engaged in the situation and is working closely with public sector partners, including Public Health Scotland and Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board, to mitigate any potential impact on the surrounding community and environment.

I am pleased to say that there is no on-going risk to public safety and that the cause of the fire will be the subject of an immediate and thorough investigation, as would normally happen.

I thank the minister for that answer, and I join her in extending my thanks to the 55 firefighters who attended for their bravery and professionalism in tackling the fire, and to the police, SEPA and council officials who have also responded. The scale of the fire at the waste recycling plant was significant—it could be seen for many miles across Renfrewshire, Glasgow and beyond.

There has also been significant concern about the fire’s environmental impact. As the minister mentioned, local residents were urged to close windows and doors to avoid toxic smoke. Debris and ash have been reported landing on people’s properties many miles away. What advice has been or will be given on what people should do if they have battery debris or any other debris from the fire, for example, in their gardens or on their cars?

SEPA has confirmed that there were no compliance issues around the site that it was aware of. The site was deemed to be low risk, with no impact on amenity, and it is well managed. It deals only with waste electrical and electronic equipment.

Any constituents in the area who have any residue from the fire in their gardens should contact the local authority. I know that SEPA has a working group, and it will be liaising with the local authority and the SFRS.

I hope that the authorities will make that advice publicly available rather than just asking constituents to seek it. That would be helpful.

The recycling of electric batteries is only going to become more prevalent, and given that there was another fire at the industrial estate in 2022, will the minister work with the industry to ask the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and SEPA to publish a full report not just on what happened, but on what the risks were, what they could be in the future and what mitigations can be put in place in order to maintain public confidence in the future?

I think that we will have to wait for the thorough investigation to be concluded before we make any commitments in that regard. For the member’s information, he might like to know that, along with other United Kingdom nations, the Scottish Government is reviewing the UK-wide batteries regulation, which applies to placing batteries on the market and to waste battery issues, including recycling.

We are considering the changes that are needed to provide an appropriate framework for the increasing number of electric vehicle batteries that are arising as waste and how they can best be managed in the UK market. That will include looking at opportunities for better regulation.

If we have concise questions and responses, I can take a few more questions from members.

I, too, thank the emergency services for their response.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has presented to the cross-party group on accident prevention and safety awareness on so-called zombie batteries. Although investigations are on-going on this particular situation, I note that lithium-ion batteries must be appropriately disposed of and contained as they are recycled. Consumer action is vital in that respect. What action can the Scottish Government take to raise consumer awareness of the safe and appropriate disposal of rechargeable batteries, in particular in goods such as vapes, toothbrushes and USB-charged devices?

Clare Adamson might be aware that the SFRS has in place a bespoke working group that focuses on the risks of lithium-ion batteries. Its findings will bolster our community safety messaging. The working group has been expanded to include a number of stakeholders and to assist in a number of workstreams, including the planning and consultation process for battery energy storage systems, which I hope will raise awareness of the issue among the public.

I, too, thank the fire service for its efforts. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Although the exact cause of the fire has yet to be established, we must recognise that waste facilities, especially battery recycling facilities, are at risk of incidents. That is why I have repeatedly raised safety concerns, such as those around the handling of lithium-ion batteries and gas canisters. Back in 2022, the Scottish Government told me that discussions were on-going with the waste sector. Will the minister tell us what action has been taken since then?

As I have said previously, there is a bespoke working group, and the UK Government is currently reviewing the UK-wide batteries regulation. The Scottish Government is clear that battery energy storage is an essential component of the decarbonised electricity grid, and that we need bold action to tackle the climate emergency. Scotland has extensive renewable generation capabilities with which to accelerate our just transition to net zero.

The scenes that we saw were absolutely horrific, and I pay tribute to the emergency services. We never want to see such scenes again, but we have seen such fires repeatedly across Scotland, particularly at Friarton in Perth, where one incident led to a tragic loss of life.

Does the minister agree that those who manufacture and sell disposable electronic devices need to take more producer responsibility for their products, including through take-back schemes in which they can invest in proper health and safety requirements that will keep them safe and enable those products to be recycled?

I share Mark Ruskell’s concerns. Since 2023, there have been 1,200 fires across the UK, which is an increase of 71 per cent from 2022; we have had four such fires in Scotland. I am in agreement with Mark Ruskell.

I join colleagues in offering thanks to all the emergency services that attended the fire. As we have heard, the plume of smoke could be seen from some miles away, and it drifted several miles northwards. Concern was raised with me locally that it took several hours for the public health information that people should close their windows and stay indoors to be forthcoming, and there was a sense of fear and alarm in the surrounding area. What learning will be done with civil contingency partners to understand how events unfolded that evening? How will the minister ensure that local residents are kept informed of the investigations?

As I said to Paul O’Kane’s colleague Neil Bibby earlier, we will ensure that there is consultation and that information is put out in the public domain. Lessons can be learned. A working group was set up immediately with SEPA, the local health service and the SFRS, and we will continue to engage and let the community know what is happening.