## Scotland’s Shipbuilding Future in Jeopardy Amidst Procurement Delays, Warns MSP
Paul Sweeney MSP has issued a stark warning that persistent delays in the Scottish Government’s crucial marine vessel replacement programme are deepening the uncertainty surrounding Ferguson Marine, Scotland’s publicly owned shipyard. He argues that the absence of a cohesive procurement strategy is leaving the nation’s shipbuilding industry dangerously exposed.
Sweeney’s critical comments follow reports from the UK Defence Journal, indicating that the initiative to replace two aging Scottish Government vessels has been pushed back significantly from initial projections. Officials have officially “reset” the programme timelines, a move that comes after months of puzzling inactivity following initial market engagement.
### A Troubled Timeline for Vital Vessels
The saga began promisingly in June 2025 when the Scottish Government issued a Prior Information Notice for the Marine Vessel Replacement Project. This covered the essential replacement of the Marine Protection Vessel *Minna* and the Marine Research Vessel *Scotia*. While not a formal tender, the notice optimistically suggested an indicative contract notice date of September 2025.
However, this optimism quickly faded. No procurement milestones were announced by the stipulated date, and the Public Contracts Scotland portal remained devoid of any further updates throughout the remainder of the year. It was only after inquiries from the UK Defence Journal in late December that the Scottish Government finally amended the original notice, issuing a “Programme Timelines Update” that unequivocally confirmed earlier expectations were no longer valid.
### A Decade of Missed Opportunities and “Risk-Averse” Leadership
Responding to these significant delays, Sweeney asserted that the lack of progress wasn’t an isolated incident but rather a symptom of a broader systemic failure to leverage public procurement as a tool to sustain and bolster Scotland’s domestic shipbuilding capabilities.
“The Scottish Government has failed to commission a new vessel from a Scottish shipyard in over a decade,” Sweeney lamented. “Despite owning a shipyard in Port Glasgow, there is clearly no joined-up strategy on public procurement in any meaningful way that is building a shipbuilding industry in Scotland.”
He went on to criticize what he perceives as an overly cautious approach to governance. “It seems to be a government run by risk-averse procurement lawyers, rather than anyone with any semblance of knowledge about how to build an industrial base and develop value and wealth in Scotland,” he contended.
#### Questioning the National Security Exemption
Sweeney’s criticisms extend to a recent parliamentary exchange where he directly challenged ministers on the possibility of awarding contracts for replacement vessels directly to a UK-based shipbuilder, or restricting competition to UK-only firms. He suggested this could be done under the national security exemption outlined in section 45 of the Subsidy Control Act 2022.
#### Government’s Stance vs. Critics’ View
In its official written response, the Scottish Government countered by stating that shipbuilding operates within a fiercely competitive global market. Ministers argued that any direct award must rigorously comply with both procurement and subsidy control legislation. Their core argument was that the planned vessels would be constructed to “merchant standards” and would not qualify as “defence platforms,” thereby placing them outside the defence-related exemptions referenced in section 45.
However, critics, including Sweeney, vehemently disagree. They argue that section 45 is fundamentally framed around the necessity of national security, not solely around a vessel’s classification or construction standard. They highlight the crucial functional roles of marine protection and research vessels, which can encompass vital activities such as fisheries enforcement, maritime domain awareness, and the safeguarding of sensitive maritime infrastructure. Sweeney asserted that the government’s position starkly illustrated a broader reluctance to act in the nation’s industrial interest.
“The government’s unwillingness to consider applying the exemption under the Subsidy Control Act of 2022 is yet another example of their complete unwillingness to deliver policy that is in the national industrial interest,” he declared.
### The Looming Crisis at Ferguson Marine
Sweeney also raised an alarming prospect: a significant gap in work at Ferguson Marine, the very shipyard owned by the Scottish Government.
“When Ferguson Marine is facing the prospect of significant redundancies this year, unless they get new work in the door, even if the Lord of the Isles ferry is directly awarded, it will take until next year to mobilise that project,” he warned. “So there is going to be a crunch in work.”
He elaborated that current fabrication activities, linked to Type 26 frigate units, provide only limited coverage for “steel trades.” Meanwhile, “outfit trades” face a particularly acute risk if no further work is secured. “There’s going to be a significant challenge for outfit trades if there’s not more shipbuilding work flowing through the yard in an end to end sense,” Sweeney explained, underscoring the comprehensive nature of the work needed.
### A Blueprint for Revival: Sweeney’s Recommendations
To avert this crisis and foster a thriving shipbuilding sector, Sweeney called upon ministers to take decisive action. He urged them to fully capitalise Ferguson Marine, in line with expert guidance from First Marine International, and to establish a consistent, long-term pipeline of public-sector shipbuilding orders.
Furthermore, Sweeney advocated for the strategic utilisation of the Scottish National Investment Bank to bolster shipbuilding finance mechanisms. “They need to create builders refund guarantee products and patient finance for shipbuilding in Scotland so that yards can start to win commercial export orders,” he explained. Without such fundamental support, Sweeney concluded with a scathing assessment: “the whole thing has been nothing more than a superficial fig leaf to avoid the embarrassment of Ferguson Marine collapsing and closing altogether.”
As of now, the Scottish Government has yet to publish a revised procurement timetable for the Marine Vessel Replacement Project, beyond the confirmation that its earlier, hopeful dates are no longer applicable. The future of Scotland’s shipbuilding industry remains shrouded in uncertainty.