SCOTTISH Labour has said that the “buck stops with the SNP government” for the botched handling of a ferry contract that resulted in costs doubling to a staggering £196.8 million. 

An extensive inquiry published today by the rural economy and connectivity committee at Holyrood has said that the procurement of two ferries from Ferguson Marine was “a catastrophic failure.”

The government’s handling of the contract also led to the delivery of two new vessels for the Clyde and Hebrides delayed until 2023, with MSPs told last year by the then finance secretary Derek Mackay that “mismanagement” by the Port Glasgow shipyard resulted in delays and overspends.

The committee’s report has said that the Scottish government was too willing to press ahead with the project despite the risks involved and stated Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) and Transport Scotland’s due diligence was “inadequate.”

The authors said that the procurement process was “not fit for purpose” and have now called for an “independent external review” to take place, warning that lessons must be learned. 

Opposition MSPs have hit out at the government’s handling of the contracts, saying it was clear the issues had been flagged up to ministers, with taxpayers now left to foot the bill. 

Scottish Labour’s Colin Smyth said: “The buck stops with the SNP government over what has been a catastrophic failure from start to finish. 

“Once again government ministers have taken their eye off the ball when it comes to the day job and if they simply try to tinker at the edges of the processes used to procure and build these ferries, then they will have learned nothing.”  

The Scottish government said that it will consider the report and respond to its recommendations “in due course.”