Latest news with #RichardLeonard
Daily Record
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Coatbridge MSP Fulton MacGregor introduces parliamentary motion hailing 'vital work' of Reach Advocacy charity
Following a drop-in session hosted by Reach Advocacy co-hosted by Mr MacGregor and Richard Leonard, Central Scotland MSP, the group gained cross-party support. Coatbridge's MSP introduced a motion in the Scottish Parliament hailing the "vital work" a grassroots charity in the town does to improve outcomes for vulnerable communities Reach Advocacy provides the only accredited advocacy training in a human rights-based approach. Following a drop-in session hosted by Reach Advocacy co-hosted by Coatbridge MSP Fulton MacGregor and Richard Leonard, Central Scotland MSP, the group gained cross-party support. However, despite this backing, and clear economic benefits of improving advocacy in Scotland, they are struggling to secure clear long-term funding. Recent research reports how for every pound spent on advocacy services, it could save the NHS £7 and local authorities £5. Mr MacGregor said: "Reach Advocacy are delivering vital, right-based support grounded in real experience. "Their accredited training is changing lives and strengthening services. "I'm proud to support them in Parliament and will continue to champion their work.'" Derek McCabe, chief executive at Reach Advocacy, added: "Scotland is facing multiple crises, where many communities need advocacy support to help them get what they are entitled to and to empower them to understand their rights." *Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here. And did you know Lanarkshire Live had its own app? Download yours for free here.
STV News
04-07-2025
- Business
- STV News
Urgent investment needed to secure future of Ferguson Marine, MSPs warn
Urgent investment is needed to secure the future of the state-owned Ferguson Marine shipyard, a parliamentary report has found. Holyrood's Public Audit Committee highlighted multiple and repeated failings at the Port Glasgow site, including leadership and board instability, inadequate internal audits, serious weaknesses in contractor oversight, and governance failures around exit packages for senior staff. MSPs found these issues, along with delays and extremely high cost overruns in the building of the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, have caused significant reputational damage to the yard. The committee said urgent investment is now needed to make sure it can be competitive once again. PA Media The report highlighted issues with leadership at the shipyard (Jane Barlow/PA). The Scottish Government bought Ferguson Marine in 2019 after it was placed into administration. But it has had problems ever since, with the building of the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa years behind schedule and multiple times over budget. The two ships, which were meant to be delivered in 2018, will now cost an estimated £460 million – up from the original price tag of £97 million. The Glen Sannox set sail near the end of last year but the Glen Rosa has been delayed again until early 2026. The Public Audit Committee has expressed serious concern over the increased cost and further delay to the second ferry. It has now called on the Scottish Government to give urgent clarification about where the additional funds are coming from. PA Media Ferguson Marine was brought into public ownership in 2019 (Andrew Milligan/PA). It expressed concerns about the yard not having any further orders lined up beyond its current contract to deliver the Glen Rosa. The report said the organisation has failed to meet the standards expected of a publicly funded body and has called on the Government to urgently improve its oversight to address some of the longstanding weaknesses at the yard. Labour MSP Richard Leonard, the committee's convener, said: 'It is clear to the Public Audit Committee that there has been a long-standing weakness in the management, governance and financial sustainability of this yard. 'That there are currently no further orders raises significant concerns for us about the future of the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde and its workforce. 'This is a state-owned yard and the Scottish Government must do more to ensure that not only is its future secure, but that the MV Glen Rosa can be delivered as soon as possible. PA Media Labour MSP Richard Leonard raised concerns about the yard having no future orders (Andrew Cowan/Scottish Parliament/PA). 'There has to be better oversight and governance of the work that is ongoing.' Mr Leonard said the committee believes the yard can improve and become competitive again. He said: 'There is no doubt that the yard has suffered significant reputational damage and that the workers at Ferguson Marine deserve better, the communities waiting for a new ferry deserve better, and the people of Scotland deserve better. 'But it doesn't have to be this way. Our committee believes that the yard can once again be competitive. 'There is no shortage of potential work. With investment, and better oversight, this yard which has a distinctive and proud history can have a distinguished and positive future.' A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'The Scottish Government's decision to take Ferguson Marine into public ownership saved the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde. 'We are ensuring the long-term future of the yard and the workforce and will invest up to £14.2 million in the yard over the next two years in order to help it modernise and secure future business. 'Scottish ministers expressed their disappointment and frustration to the Board of FMPG at the confirmation of a further delay and increased estimated cost to deliver the Glen Rosa. 'They also made it clear to the yard's leadership that it must take immediate and sustained action to restore trust, enforce delivery discipline, and bring the project under control. 'This will be delivered alongside the development of the business's future commercial strategy, which is being spearheaded by a new CEO to enable Ferguson Marine to win new business in its target markets.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
BBC News
04-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Ferguson Marine shipyard needs urgent investment to survive, MSPs warn
The publicly-owned Ferguson Marine shipyard needs "urgent investment" to become more competitive and survive, according to a committee of MSPs. The yard has no pipeline of work lined up beyond the ferry MV Glen Rosa, which is expected to be delivered by the middle of next year, raising concern for its future. Holyrood's public audit committee said leadership and governance failings along with the delays and cost overruns building two CalMac ferries had caused "reputational damage", despite the yard's long and proud history. The MSPs said there was no shortage of potential work, and recovery was possible but it would require investment and better oversight. The Port Glasgow shipyard recently missed out on a government-funded order for seven small CalMac ferries, seen as well-suited to its a visit to Ferguson's last month, committee members were told its bid was rated best on quality, but labour costs meant it lost out to a rival shipyard in Poland. The committee said the yard's inability to compete effectively in the open market was, in part, "the result of decades of under investment". Committee convener Richard Leonard told BBC Scotland News: "When we visited the yard it was obvious that it needed more capital expenditure, but there was no shortage of work out there. "If they were able to compete for the work that's coming on stream, whether it's more smaller vessels for CalMac, or to support the North Sea renewable wind developments, or to support the Border Patrol service, there is lots of work in the pipeline, it's just not going to Ferguson's at the minute."A year ago Scottish ministers promised £14.2m of investment over two years to improve productivity, although it remains unclear how much has yet been Labour MSP said he believed about £25m was required to modernise the shipyard effectively. "This is a yard with a distinguished past which could have a distinguished future as well," he added: "There is no doubt that the yard has suffered significant reputational damage and that the workers at Ferguson Marine deserve better, the communities waiting for a new ferry deserve better and the people of Scotland deserve better." The report raised concerns about a number of recent issues, some of them previously highlighted by the Auditor General. They included: A decision to award two redundancy packages to two senior managers, above the £95,000 public sector threshold, without government up salary payments made to an employee of ferries procurement body CMAL who was seconded to the yard's management. He was later redesignated as self-employed and submitted invoices totalling £144, May, Ferguson Marine said the delivery date for Glen Rosa had been pushed back by another nine months and the cost of the ship had increased by up to £ committee expressed "serious concern" at this and urged ministers to give "urgent clarification" about where the additional funds were coming from. The Ferguson shipyard in Port Glasgow was nationalised in 2019 after contracts for the two dual-fuel ships, Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, ran into difficulties, and ferries procurement body CMAL rejected claims for extra costs. The last commercial yard on the River Clyde, which employs about 300 workers and apprentices, is now run by a government-owned company Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow (FMPG). Delays and design challenges continued under public ownership with the cost of the two ships now about £460m if written-off government loans and money paid out prior to nationalisation are included. The original contract price was £ Sannox was finally delivered to CMAL last November, nearly seven years late, and the second ship is due by the end of June 2026. While many competing explanations for the problems have been put forward, there has been broad political consensus that the workforce themselves are not to blame. One of the committee's recommendations is that workforce representatives be given a greater role in board meetings. The MSPs noted that the yard remained hopeful of securing orders for three small CalMac ferries in the second phase of the small vessels replacement programme. A report on their recent site visit also revealed that management had asked ministers to consider directly awarding a forthcoming contract for a replacement for MV Lord of the Isles, an 85m long ferry which was previously built by Ferguson's.
Scotsman
03-07-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Ferries Scotland: SNP told to hand Ferguson Marine 'distinguished future' with urgent investment
A cross-party Holyrood committee has published a damning report into the ferries saga and the future of Ferguson Marine. Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... SNP ministers have been told to bring forward urgent investment to give the publicly-owned Ferguson Marine shipyard a 'distinguished and positive future'. The plea comes from a cross-party committee of MSPs that has highlighted multiple and repeated failings at the Port Glasgow site. These cited failings include leadership and board instability, inadequate internal audits, serious weaknesses in contractor oversight, and governance failures around exit packages for senior staff. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Work on the MV Glen Rosa is not now expected to be completed until spring next year (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell) | Getty Images These issues, together with the delays and huge cost overruns associated with the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa vessels, have caused significant reputational damage to the yard. Holyrood's Public Audit Committee now said it believed urgent investment was needed to make sure it could be competitive once again. During the committee's consideration, Ferguson Marine announced the cost of the MV Glen Rosa had risen to £185 million and was delayed once more, this time until early 2026. The two ships, which were meant to be delivered in 2018, will now cost an estimated £460m – up from the original price tag of £97m. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The committee has expressed its serious concern over the increased cost and further delay to the ferry and has now called on the Scottish Government to give urgent clarification about where the additional funds are coming from. The new report also notes the yard does not have any further orders lined up beyond its existing contract to deliver on the MV Glen Rosa. Today's report also warns the organisation has failed to meet the standards expected of a publicly funded body. The committee has called on the Scottish Government to urgently improve its oversight to address some of the long-standing weaknesses at the yard. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Committee convener Richard Leonard said: 'It is clear to the Public Audit Committee that there has been a long-standing weakness in the management, governance and financial sustainability of this yard. That there are currently no further orders raises significant concerns for us about the future of the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde and its workforce. Labour MSP Richard Leonard 'This is a state-owned yard and the Scottish Government must do more to ensure that not only is its future secure, but that the MV Glen Rosa can be delivered as soon as possible. There has to be better oversight and governance of the work that is ongoing.' He added: 'There is no doubt that the yard has suffered significant reputational damage and that the workers at Ferguson Marine deserve better, the communities waiting for a new ferry deserve better and the people of Scotland deserve better. 'But it doesn't have to be this way. Our committee believes that the yard can once again be competitive. There is no shortage of potential work. With investment, and better oversight, this yard, which has a distinctive and proud history, can have a distinguished and positive future.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Louise Gilmour, GMB Scotland secretary, said workers must be allowed to restore their reputation, which the union claimed had been unfairly damaged by delays and overspends affecting the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa. GMB Scotland secretary Louise Gilmour | Andrew Cawley She said: 'People have short memories, but, before these misjudged and ill-planned contracts, this yard successfully built a third of CalMac's current fleet, including the original Lord of the Isles. 'Workers must now be given the chance to restore what was a worldwide reputation for excellence that has been damaged through no fault of their own. Before being turned into a political football, they delivered a steady stream of ferries serving Scotland's islands and must be allowed to do so again.' A Scottish Government spokesperson said the 'decision to take Ferguson Marine into public ownership saved the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We are ensuring the long-term future of the yard and the workforce and will invest up to £14.2 million in the yard over the next two years in order to help it modernise and secure future business,' the spokespersons said. "Scottish ministers expressed their disappointment and frustration to the board of FMPG at the confirmation of a further delay and increased estimated cost to deliver the Glen Rosa. They also made it clear to the yard's leadership that it must take immediate and sustained action to restore trust, enforce delivery discipline, and bring the project under control.
The Herald Scotland
03-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Urgent investment needed to secure future of Ferguson Marine
It has faced difficulties in delivering two new ferries, Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa, both of which are late and over-budget, and recently missed out on a £175m contract to build seven new ferries of CalMac. The yard has no further contracts lined up after it delivers Glen Rosa, now due in early 2026, and an audit published in December 2024 highlighted "a material risk and uncertainty over FMPG's ability to continue as a going concern, for at least 12 months from the date of signing the accounts". Read More: Having considered that audit, Holyrood's cross-party Public Audit Committee has released its report into the future of Ferguson Marine. The committee comprised convenor Richard Leonard (Scottish Labour), deputy convener Jamie Greene (Scottish Liberal Democrats), Colin Beattie (SNP), Graham Simpson (Scottish Conservatives), and Stuart McMillan (SNP). It found "multiple and repeated failings, including leadership and board instability, inadequate internal audit, serious weakness in contractor oversight and governance failures around exit packages for senior staff", with trade union involvement in decision-making minimal and considered inadequate. Frequent changes among senior management had an adverse effect on governance, while weak internal controls and lack of internal audit until recently contributed to poor oversight. In addition, payments approved to a contractor and exit packages for senior executives bypassed Scottish Government approval. The report highlighted an incident in which Ferguson Marine was hit with a £48,000 tax bill from HMRC after entering into a contractor payment arrangement for a secondee from CMAL (Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited) who was initially seconded to FMPG, later moved to FMPG's payroll, then - without proper board approval - switched to being paid as a self-employed contractor. The committee expressed serious concerns over the yard's viability as a going concern going forward, saying considerable investment will be needed to safeguard its future. It urged the Scottish Government and Ferguson marine to finalise and publish a credible long-term business plan to secure sustainable work; invest in modernisation to make the yard more competitive; strengthen governance structures and ensure future funding and investment decisions are be subject to rigorous value-for-money tests and proper approval. Committee Convener Richard Leonard MSP said: 'It is clear to the Public Audit Committee that there has been a long standing weakness in the management, governance and financial sustainability of this yard. That there are currently no further orders raises significant concerns for us about the future of the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde and its workforce. 'This is a state-owned yard and the Scottish Government must do more to ensure that not only is its future secure, but that the MV Glen Rosa can be delivered as soon as possible. There has to be better oversight and governance of the work that is ongoing. 'There is no doubt that the yard has suffered significant reputational damage and that the workers at Ferguson Marine deserve better, the communities waiting for a new ferry deserve better and the people of Scotland deserve better. 'But it doesn't have to be this way. Our Committee believes that the yard can once again be competitive. There is no shortage of potential work. With investment, and better oversight, this yard which has a distinctive and proud history can have a distinguished and positive future.' Responding to the committee's report, GMB Scotland, the biggest union at Ferguson Marine, echoed calls for investment and the direct award of contracts, including the replacement for Lord of the Isles, to the Port Glasgow yard. Louise Gilmour, GMB Scotland secretary, said workers must be allowed to restore a world-class reputation unfairly damaged by delays and overspends affecting the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa. She said: 'People have short memories but, before these misjudged and ill-planned contracts, this yard successfully built a third of CalMac's current fleet, including the original Lord of the Isles. 'Workers must now be given the chance to restore what was a worldwide reputation for excellence that has been damaged through no fault of their own. 'Before being turned into a political football, they delivered a steady stream of ferries serving Scotland's islands and must be allowed to do so again. 'Ministers and their civil servants insist direct awards are not straightforward but what could be more straightforward than Scotland's publicly-owned shipyard working in tandem with Scotland's ferry operators. 'Whoever is to blame for the failures around the most recent contracts it is not the workers. 'They deserve the support of ministers and that starts with being given the chance to build the kind of ferries they successfully completed for generations. 'The yard needs a steady pipeline of work and that can start with the Lord of Isles.' Ferguson Marine was one of six yards to make it to the second stage of the tender process for seven new CalMac ferries, but the contract ultimately went to Remontowa Shipbuilding in Gdansk. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'The Scottish Government's decision to take Ferguson Marine into public ownership saved the last commercial shipyard on the Clyde. "We are ensuring the long-term future of the Yard and the workforce and will invest up to £14.2 million in the yard over the next two years in order to help it modernise and secure future business. "Scottish Ministers expressed their disappointment and frustration to the Board of FMPG at the confirmation of a further delay and increased estimated cost to deliver the Glen Rosa. "They also made it clear to the yard's leadership that it must take immediate and sustained action to restore trust, enforce delivery discipline, and bring the project under control. 'This will be delivered alongside the development of the business's future commercial strategy, which is being spearheaded by a new CEO to enable Ferguson Marine to win new business in its target markets.'
