UNIONS have welcomed the Scottish government’s decision to nationalise Ardrossan Harbour and award new ferry contracts to publicly-owned Ferguson Marine.

The harbour had operated CalMac’s busiest ferry route to Arran, but the future of the route – operated continuously for more than a century – had been thrown into doubt over recent years.

Despite the ship Glen Sannox, designed for the route and built 20 miles up the coast at Ferguson Marine, running eight years late in delivery, by the time it came into service Peel Ports had still failed to upgrade Ardrossan’s facility to let it dock, forcing a diversion and decimating the town’s fragile economy.

Now, after months of negotiations, Scottish transport secretary Fiona Hyslop confirmed the government’s ferry procurement company, CMAL, will take ownership by the end of this month and that work was already underway to tender for improvements.

She told MSPs: “This purchase will secure the port in public ownership to allow us to focus on the redevelopment of the facility as the primary mainland port for Arran.”

In a second boost for the lower Clyde, Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes announced her government’s intention to “direct award” contracts for two fishery support vessels and two new CalMac ferries to Port Glasgow’s Ferguson Marine.

GMB Scotland secretary Louise Gilmour argued the contracts “will allow the yard to turn the page and allow a skilled, committed and blameless workforce to begin restoring its worldwide reputation for excellence.”

She said: “These are exactly the kind of ships Ferguson has been sending around the world for more than 100 years and must now open a pipeline of work to allow this famous yard to thrive for 100 more.

“We are an island nation, will always need ships and Ferguson Marine should be helping build them.”

Welcoming both announcements “that could benefit workers, communities and the surrounding areas,” STUC general secretary Roz Foyer said: “Adopting an interventionist approach, with governments taking a direct stake in our national infrastructure, is the solid foundation required for a proper industrial strategy.  

“Too often in the past, public money has been poured into contracts without robust guarantees on pay, conditions, or training. 

“That cannot happen again and the future of the harbour and Ferguson Marine must now prioritise decent employment with fair work conditions that benefits Scotland’s workforce and surrounding communities.”