Bemused Scots flock to dock for a ‘wry chuckle’ at stranded Tasmanian ferry that helped sink a premier

The Spirit of Tasmania IV has been docked at the port of Leith near Edinburgh since December, initially costing Tasmanian taxpayers around $47,000 a week. Photograph: Ian Stirling

For the better part of six months, Edinburgh resident Elaine Dick has been confronted with a 212-metre-long red-and-white Tasmanian ferry every time she looks out her living room window.

The Spirit of Tasmania IV has been docked at the nearby port of Leith since December – initially costing Tasmanian taxpayers around $47,000 a week – because the state government did not build a dock big enough to support it.