This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Campbeltown-Ballycastle ferry
13/03/2006
Transport Minister Tavish Scott today outlined the efforts underway to try and identify a possible operator for a ferry service between Campbeltown and Ballycastle.
Though none of the four original bidders submitted tenders for the route, the Minister said in an answer to a Parliamentary question that work would continue to see if a suitable operator could be identified under this competition.
Mr Scott also said that any potential operator would have to meet the qualification criteria and their proposals would have to comply fully with the terms set out in the Invitation to Tender.
He said:
"A ferry service linking Campbeltown and Ballycastle would create new opportunities for business and tourism between Argyll and Moyle.
"This devolved government is committed to working with our colleagues in the Northern Ireland administration, as well as both local communities, to try and identify potential ferry operators who could restore this important link between Scotland and Northern Ireland.
"Any company considering taking over the route will have to meet the qualification criteria set for the competition and comply fully with the terms set out in the Invitation to Tender."
The full text of the PQ which the Minister answered today is:
Question
To ask the Scottish Executive to set out the steps it is taking in co-operation with the Northern Ireland administration to attract an operator to run a ferry service between Campbeltown and Ballycastle.
Answer
The Scottish Executive in co-operation with the Northern Ireland administration initiated a tendering exercise in 2005 for a subsidised public service contract to operate a passenger and vehicle ferry service between Campbeltown in Argyll and Ballycastle in Antrim, Northern Ireland. Following a pre-qualification exercise, an Invitation to Tender was issued to four companies on 20 September requesting submission of tenders by January 10, 2006. The Executive was disappointed that no tenders were submitted.
The Scottish Executive has reviewed the reasons for this outcome and has also investigated whether there are any options available which would allow reinstatement of the service within the terms of the 2005-06 tender. The main terms of the tender were a five year contract offering a service for 11 months of the year with a maximum annual grant of one million pounds per year for a passenger and vehicle ferry service between the two ports.
The Executive is aware of the strong support for the reinstatement of the service voiced in both Kintyre and Antrim and of the local disappointment at the outcome of the tendering process. The Executive has therefore agreed with the Northern Ireland administration that a final effort should be made to identify any potential ferry operator interested in submitting a tender to provide the service under a negotiated procedure. The procurement rules permit this provided that the operator meets the original qualification criteria for the competition and that the tender complies fully with the original terms of the Invitation to Tender issued for this exercise.
These investigations will require time to pursue and it is not possible to place a precise timescale on them in advance, but every effort will be made to establish the position as soon as practicable.