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Publication - Correspondence

Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow): written authority - December 2024

Published
21 March 2025
Directorate
Financial Management Directorate
Topic
Business, industry and innovation

Written authority and formal request between the Director General (DG) for Economy and the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic regarding the continuation of the written authority for Ferguson Marine. A Written Authority is provided to Accountable Officers by Ministers in circumstances when delivering an action is inconsistent with the Accountable Officer’s Duties and a ministerial direction on the specific action is required to continue.

Part of

Written authority

To: Gregor Irwin, Director-General Economy Scottish Government
From: Kate Forbes MSP, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic
Date: 18 December 2024

Dear Gregor

Thank you for the submission of 17 December 2024 on your assessment against the Accountable Officer standards following the rise in costs to complete Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa at Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow (FMPG).

In line with your Accountable Officer (AO) duties that are set out in the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000, in particular section 15, you have a duty to meet the principles of regularity, propriety and value for money.  I am satisfied that you have scrutinised and interrogated the projected costs provided by FMPG and assessed these against the other options and note that your assessment has found that the value for money standard is not met in respect of Glen Rosa.

In the letter from Neil Gray on 14 May 2023 in which written authority was given to progress with Glen Rosa based on your previous AO assessment, Mr Gray set out the policy objectives for taking FMPG into public ownership.   I am guided by those policy objectives in making my decision to continue with the build for Glen Rosa at FMPG. 

I therefore confirm that the previous written authority continues and along with this letter provides you with authority to continue the build of Glen Rosa at FMPG.

Finally, I remain committed to supporting a sustainable and successful future for FMPG.  I have therefore dedicated up to £14.2m as an investment over two years in a range of initiatives to modernise FMPG and its equipment, and to improve productivity at FMPG, subject to full legal and commercial diligence.

Kate Forbes MSP

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