A CRUISE ship due to come to Greenock next month to disembark passengers and take on hundreds more has reported a major coronavirus outbreak.

Over 30 crew members on MS Roald Amundsen have tested positive for Covid-19.

The vessel is scheduled to visit Greenock Ocean Terminal next month before leaving for an 'expedition voyage'.

All 158 staff on board the ship, owned by Norwegian operator Hurtigruten, were checked after four employees became unwell and were found to be infected with the virus.

A total of 36 tested positive for Covid-19.

One voyage has already been scrapped and now there are huge question marks over the ship’s next scheduled cruise, which is an 11-day trip starting on September 2 from Portsmouth.

Its itinerary includes finishing at Greenock Ocean Terminal 10 days later.

The ship, which has a capacity of over 500 passengers, is then due to start another cruise from Greenock the same day.

Inverclyde's MSP Stuart McMillan says the cruise call must be cancelled to protect public health and he has demanded updates from the operator on the situation.

Mr McMillan said: "My first concern is for the health of the crew.

"This ship is due here in September.

"I cannot see that still happening with severity of Covid-19.

"I would not want to put my constituents at risk.

"Regular updates from Hurtigruten are essential."

The company's vice president of global communications Rune Thomas Ege believes the outbreak has been brought under control.

But no announcement has been made about future cruises.

He said: “We are now focusing all available efforts in taking care of our guests and colleagues.

"We work closely with the Norwegian national and local health authorities for follow-up, information, further testing, and infection tracking.

"The initial four crew members that were infected were isolated several days ago because of other disease symptoms, showing no symptoms of Covid-19.

"They were routinely tested before being admitted to hospital in Tromsø on Friday morning.

“Hurtigruten is in contact with all guests that were on board MS Roald Amundsen’s July 17 and 24 departures — 209 guests from the first voyage and 178 guests from the July 24 departure will self-quarantine in line with Norwegian health authority regulations.

"Hurtigruten also assists guests with transport, accommodation, food and other needs.

“The safety and well-being of our guests and crew is Hurtigruten’s number one priority.

"All crew members are closely monitored and screened daily.

"Non-Norwegian crew members are quarantined before boarding the ship, and non-European crew need to undergo two negative Covid-19 tests before even leaving their home country.”

The scheduled cruise from Greenock was due to visit Oban, Stornoway, the archipelago of St. Kilda, Rathlin Island in Northern Ireland, Liverpool, Pembroke Dock in Wales, Cobh near Cork in Ireland, the Isles of Scilly and Fowey in Cornwall before finishing in Portsmouth.

The maximum number of passengers allowed on the expedition had been set at 350 to ensure social distancing, with prices starting at £2,000.