
Right throughout the tendering process, there was much political debate as to whether the whole thing was required or not, with many submissions to the Scottish Executive inferring that demands from the European Commission to conduct the exercise need not have gone ahead. Regardless, now that the final outcome has taken effect, the annual subsidy paid by the Scottish Executive (or Scottish Government as it is now being known) has risen substantially, from £31.4 million in 2006-07 to £43 million for the coming year, which will include a reported £10.4 million for the lease of the vessels from Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd.
Two CalMac ferry services are unaffected. The service between Gourock and Dunoon, subject of a separate tender which at the closing date last November, attracted no bidders, remains as is. It is currently being operated by CalMac on behalf of Cowal Ferries Ltd, a subsidiary set up to take over its running, and also the service that CalMac operates from Ballycastle to Rathlin in Northern Ireland. It is similarly operated by another subsidiary company, Rathlin Ferries Ltd.
1 comments:
Thanks for this !! A lot of our money moving around ?? jc
Post a Comment