Ferries scandal Scotland: Ministers refuse to publish due diligence report into increased ferry costs despite pledging transparency

The report allowed the government to increase funding to Ferguson Marine despite value for money fears.

Advice to ministers used to justify an additional £72 million in taxpayer’s cash being funnelled into Ferguson Marine shipyard will be kept secret after the Scottish Government refused to release the information.

The report examined whether the request for additional funding from Ferguson Marine was justified in order to ensure the two ferries being built at the shipyard would be completed.

Hulls 801, the Glen Sannox, and 802, are more than five years late and more than £300m over budget as the vessels continue to be built at the embattled yard.

The Glen Sannox, still being constructed at Ferguson Marine. Picture: John Devlin

Critics said the failure to publish the report, which has also been requested to be seen by Holyrood’s public audit committee, demonstrated a “refusal to accept accountability” for the ferries fiasco.

In an exceptionally rare step in May, economy secretary Neil Gray was forced to issue what is known as a ‘written authority’ for the extra £72m in funding to be sent to the yard, overruling concerns about value for money from civil servants.

That considered it would be cheaper for ministers to scrap the as-yet-unnamed hull 802 and procure a new ferry than continue piling money into Ferguson Marine.

Consultancy giant Teneo, which is also working on the Government’s dealings with GFG Alliance, undertook the due diligence work on the additional funding request, with a final financial report issued on December 9 last year – a week before the Scottish Budget.

Submissions were then prepared for ministers, specifically the-then deputy first minister John Swinney, in December and March. However, these submissions are, in their entirety, redacted.

Officials claimed releasing the information would “likely put the future viability of commercial operations of the companies involved at substantial risk” and claimed there was a contractual agreement that Teneo’s work would be “commercially sensitive”.

The Government concluded it was not in the public interest and “inappropriate” to publish the report. The decision casts doubt on the ability of the public audit committee’s work scrutinising the yard’s operations as it had also sought to see the report.

However, the Freedom of Information response suggests the Government believes it should never see the light of day, an argument likely to extend to MSPs.

Scottish Labour MSP Alex Rowley attacked the Government’s lack of transparency.

He said: “The Scottish Government's refusal to accept accountability for this mess cannot go on. I wrote to the Cabinet secretary recently regarding Ferguson Marine and in his response was an outright denial of any responsibility. It is absolutely shocking that the Government are dodging any responsibility whatsoever.

"At the heart of this fiasco are island communities that have been failed time and time again by an out-of-touch administration more focused on spin than solutions. The SNP have stonewalled on this issue for long enough. Now we need transparency and real action to support our island communities."

A Scottish Conservative spokesperson said: “This is sadly typical of the shameful secrecy and lack of accountability that has characterised the SNP’s ferries scandal.

“Scottish taxpayers and betrayed island communities have a right to know the details of this report and it’s unacceptable that ministers are blocking its release.

“The Ferguson Marine vessels are six years late and three-and-a-half times over budget. That’s a disgrace and yet, even now, the SNP are still resorting to stalling and evasion tactics to avoid scrutiny.”

The Government failed to answer whether MSPs would be allowed to see the report and did not respond to questions on why the commercial interests of Ferguson Marine trump demands for transparency.

A Government spokesperson said: "The Scottish Government is committed to transparency and has pro-actively published more than 200 documents on its website. We have co-operated at every stage of inquiries from the public audit committee, the rural economy and connectivity committee and Audit Scotland and will continue to do so.”