FERGUSON'S should be awarded 'every single' new Caledonian MacBrayne ferry contract by the Scottish Government in the post-Brexit era, an election candidate has declared.

The Alba Party's Chris McEleny says ministers — free from European Union rules and bureaucracy — could now provide 'two decades' of work to the nationalised Port Glasgow industrial hub.

Mr McEleny acknowledged that there is still 'much work to be done' in turning the shipyard around and completing two currently heavily delayed CalMac ships.

But he insisted that a bright future for the yard is within the gift of a government who stepped in to rescue the yard with a nationalisation deal after the original £97m ferries deal turned sour.

Mr McEleny said: "I campaigned for Scotland to remain in the EU, but nonetheless we were dragged out against our will.

"Whilst I do not believe that the pros outweigh the cons, that doesn't mean we should cut off our nose to spite our face and ignore opportunities we now have.

"The Scottish Government has the opportunity to directly award every single new CalMac and Northern ferry to Ferguson's.

"There is a real risk that orders may be sent to Cammell Laird on Merseyside to construct the new Gourock-Dunoon, and Islay ferries, but instead we can guarantee two decades of work to Ferguson's."

Currently, MV Glen Sannox and the unnamed 'Hull 802' at Ferguson's, both intended for the CalMac fleet, are now nearly five years behind schedule in the wake of a procurement debacle involving the Scottish Government quango Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd and the yard's former owner, billionaire businessman Jim McColl.

The government took over Ferguson's 19 months ago after administrators were called in.

Yard turnaround director Tim Hair is trying to recruit 120 additional skilled tradespeople — which will boost the workforce to around 500 — in a bid to complete and deliver the ferries next year.

Candidate Mr McEleny — responding to a call from the Campaign to Save Inchgreen Dry Dock to comment on the yard — said: "The scope of this [potential two-decades of ] work would be a foundation for the yard to expand and win contracts for large ocean fairing vessels, as well as major renewables projects.

"This is why bringing Inchgreen into public ownership is crucial, as it will be vital in growing the workforce to in excess of 1,000 quality and well paid jobs, with a pipeline of apprenticeships created each year to support the growth and to retain our skills base."