SCOTTISH businessman Jim McColl has accused the Scottish Government of a “hatchet job” on workers at the Ferguson shipyard.
As a former owner of the yard, he is right to ask why a Scottish shipyard can’t be used to build a new fleet of ferries to serve Scotland’s island communities.
And he also raises a valid point when he says the Fergusons workers should not be blamed for previous failings on ferry contracts.
The Clyde has a long and proud tradition of shipbuilding. It was the best location for shipbuilding in the world, with more than 25,000 vessels being build on the river.
Shipbuilding was an integral part of Scotland’s industrial might, providing jobs for thousands of workers.
Those days are long gone, but it does not mean that we should give up on shipbuilding as a key part of the Scottish economy.
New vessels are always needed for our island communities, and there is no reason why they should not be produced here.
The skilled workers at Fergusons are not to blame for the delays to the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa Arran ferries – which were well over budget and took an age to build.
As Jim McColl said, any yard would have had problems building those ships due to constantly changing design briefs.
The workers at Fergusons deserve certainty over the future.
And the Scottish Government must ensure that the yard gets the work it needs to survive.
It’s a River pity
The news that River City is being axed by the BBC Scotland has been roundly condemned.
Industry leaders have called on the broadcaster to rethink a move that will inevitably lead to job losses and impact on the earnings of freelancers who work on the show.
There have also been reports that a lease on the Dumbarton site expires in September around the same time the show will end.
Leading some to cry ‘foul’.
The Beeb, meanwhile, has the temerity to blame Scottish viewers for the decision to give up on the country’s most popular soap.
It says tastes have changed and that it wants to reach an international audience despite the fact that it is Scots who pay the license fee.
Three newly announced shows are a legal drama series, a six-parter about Buckfast drinking gang of youths and a drama about drug dealers.
Who knows, maybe there’ll be a role for River City’s character, Shellsuit Bob.