AUTHORITIES in Dubai are being asked to provide a ‘clear picture’ of the condition of the QE2 by leading figures who are attempting to bring her to Greenock.

Inverclyde’s top regeneration official, Aubrey Fawcett, this week chaired the first meeting of a working group which has been established to move the homecoming idea forward.

Mr Fawcett — chief executive of Riverside Inverclyde and regeneration director at the council — met with representatives from the Scottish Government, VisitScotland, Scottish Enterprise and Scottish Development International on Wednesday afternoon to discuss what needs to be done to make the QE2 dream a reality.

Officials decided to step up their efforts and will now formally approach authorities in Dubai, where the QE2 has been stranded since being sold to developers in 2008.

Representatives of Scottish Development International in Dubai have now been tasked with making direct contact with the authorities there.

It is believed they still own the company which bought the former Cunard liner seven years ago.

The group want to know if the vessel is for sale and her current condition, with a view to carrying out a project feasibility study.

Reports suggest the retired cruise ship is in a poor state after plans to convert her into a luxury floating hotel failed to materialise.

Mr Fawcett said: “The current state of the QE2 has not been established beyond the initial reports and there has been silence from the key contacts in Dubai on whether it is even up for sale.

“We need to establish that and having the local contacts of Scottish Enterprise through Scottish Development International’s offices in Dubai will help to establish a clear picture. The working group are in agreement that the QE2 is a strong symbol of Scottish maritime history and that it is shocking to see the state she is in.

“Having the right partners around the table who can make a clear commitment to establishing the facts and examining whether there is a business case is the right course of action.” Inverclyde Council declared support for the ambitious QE2 idea in June after it was first floated by community campaigner John Houston and highlighted in the Tele.

Local authority leader Stephen McCabe then wrote to the Scottish Government about the possibility of bringing her back to the River Clyde.

Earlier this week Scottish Government tourism minister Fergus Ewing gave his support to the idea. The new working group also includes representatives from West Dunbartonshire Council, which has also expressed an interest in relocating the QE2 to Clydebank, where she was built in 1965.