The Scottish Government’s ferry-owning company did not want to publicly announce Ferguson Marine as the preferred bidder to build two ferries at an event in 2015, MSPs have been told.
Nicola Sturgeon ultimately attended the event at the Port Glasgow shipyard on 31 August 2015, where Jim McColl’s company was declared the preferred bidder.
However, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) had advised against making a public announcement, saying discussions about the contract were ongoing and they did not want to present Ferguson Marine as a “fait accompli”.
