Save Ardrossan Harbour – Lobby of the Scottish Parliament

Circular No: NP/099/25

 

TO ALL MARITIME BRANCHES AND REGIONAL COUNCILS

 

Our ref: S2/2

 

12^th June 2025

 

Dear Colleagues

 

Save Ardrossan Harbour – Lobby of the Scottish Parliament

 

Further to circular 021/25 of 17^th February 2025, nearly 4,500 people, including hundreds of RMT members have signed the petition drawn up by local campaigners calling on the Scottish Government to start refurbishment of Ardrossan Harbour, the only privately owned harbour on the CalMac network, owned by Peel Ports. 

 

The Scottish Transport Secretary, Fiona Hyslop MSP said in April that: "This Government remains fully committed to the future of Ardrossan Harbour…it is still our intention to utilise the funding for a potential purchase from our 2025-26 budget.” 

 

However, the Programme for Government 2025-26 published on 6^th May stated that the Scottish Government would be “Progressing business cases for infrastructure works at major ports including Port Ellen, Gasaigh and Ardrossan.”

 

The next stage in this community driven campaign is a Lobby of the Scottish Parliament on Thursday 19th June. RMT support this campaign and notified MSPs of the Lobby at the meeting of the RMT Scottish Parliamentary Group yesterday.

 

Glasgow Shipping branch and the RMT Scotland Council have made donations to the cost of bus hire to attend the lobby and I would urge members in western Scotland, especially CalMac members off ship to attend the Save Ardrossan Harbour lobby.

 

The bus leaves from Ardrossan at 9.30am, to arrive at the Scottish Parliament c11.30am and returns from Holyrood to Ardrossan at 3pm, which will be enough time for Arran residents to catch the 6pm ferry. To book a seat on the bus to the Lobby please contact saveardrossanharbour@outlook.com

 

In 2023-24, Peel Ports paid out dividends to private shareholders of £153.9m. The Chair, Isle of Man resident John Whittaker saw his wealth increase by £225m to nearly £2bn. There are unconfirmed reports that Peel Ports is demanding £80m from the Scottish Government for public ownership of this critical piece of lifeline ferry infrastructure which Peel has drained for profit and failed to invest in since the Thatcherite privatisation 34 years ago. 

 

All the while Peel Ports makes these outrageous demands, the longer it will be before upgrade work can begin at Ardrossan, which was originally planned to start in 2016. This directly affects RMT members at CalMac and on the integrated ScotRail services, as well as the community in Ardrossan which is in one of the 10% most deprived areas in Scotland. We will not tolerate working class communities being held to ransom by billionaires and neither should the Scottish Government.

 

The 32-year-old MV Caledonian Isles has recently returned to Ardrossan and could pick up the run in next few days from the remaining berth after 18 months out of service. Passenger numbers on the temporary Troon-Brodick are much lower than Ardrossan-Brodick over a comparable period and the only beneficiaries of this arrangement are Pentland Ferries who are making a reported £1m per month from the Scottish taxpayer for the time charter of the MV Alfred catamaran to CalMac. 

 

I urge RMT members across Scotland to attend this Lobby of the MSPs on 19^th June to Save Ardrossan Harbour.

 

I would be grateful if you could bring the information contained in this circular to the attention of all members in your Branch. You will be kept advised of all further developments.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Eddie Dempsey

General Secretary