INVERCLYDE’S bid to land the QE2 is being backed by the Scottish Conservatives’ deputy leader.

Jackson Carlaw MSP responded warmly to a letter from Inverclyde Council leader Stephen McCabe outlining why the ship should be brought from Dubai to a permanent berth in Greenock.

Mr Carlaw says the vessel’s return would be of ‘enormous benefit not only to the local area, but to the whole of Scotland’.

He said: “The QE2 represents an era when ships built on the Clyde were the pride of Britain and were rightly regarded around the world as the pinnacle of maritime engineering.

“Returning this magnificent liner to the dock where it was originally fitted-out seems wholly appropriate for an area whose heritage is so closely linked to the shipbuilding industry.” Mr Carlaw said he believed the initial costs would be offset by the long-term economic and cultural advantages that would arise from having hotel and conference suites, museums and industrial training facilities generating employment and inward investment.

The MSP has also tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament to ask the Scottish Government to ‘provide the necessary political and financial will’ to help the bid.