BELEAGUERED Ferguson's boss Tim Hair is today preparing to brief Scotland's finance secretary on the 'progress' of the two fiasco ferries which have been further delayed under his leadership.

Kate Forbes is set to visit the shipyard tomorrow as political pressure over the five-years late vessels — and the Scottish Government's ferries strategy — grows.

Labour's west of Scotland MSP Katy Clark has today appeared to back calls by Inverclyde's Alba Party councillor Chris McEleny for all future ferries contract to be awarded to Ferguson's — Scotland's nationalised yard.

In a letter to Ms Forbes — given to the Telegraph yesterday — Ms Clark says: "Given Brexit there can now no longer be an argument that tendering is necessary.

"The Scottish Government must drive a rapid and thorough state-led industrial strategy that takes into account the needs of affected communities.

"In my work as a constituency representative, I have heard repeatedly of the failure to involve local communities in decision making leading to poor decisions."

Ferguson's 'turnaround' boss Mr Hair was paid £791,000 last year and his current total pay since taking the helm now stands at £1.2m.

During his tenure, work on MV Glen Sannox and Hull 802 has slipped a further 15 weeks behind schedule.

In her letter to Ms Forbes, Ms Clark says: "I hope the trip [to the yard] is informative given the colossal challenges faced by the company and the ferry network more broadly, and I am keen to convey my own concerns.

"My constituents are in desperate need of a functioning and effective ferry service run in the public interest.

"However, the management of the project to build two lifeline ferries at Ferguson has been shambolic from the outset.

"As you know the procurement of the vessels was described as a 'catastrophic failure' by a Holyrood committee in December, which found more widely that the procurement process for was 'not fit for purpose'."

Ms Clark adds: "It has also emerged that the Scottish Government is paying Ferguson's 'turnaround director' Tim Hair an extraordinary £790,000 a year.

"Such excessive pay gaps between senior boardroom staff and hard-pressed workers would be utterly unjustifiable even if the project was a success.

"Far greater oversight is needed for such appointments and I fully support calls for an audit into the financial management of the company."

Ms Clark wrote: "I welcomed the nationalisation of the shipyard in 2019 and felt strongly that this decision must not be regarded as a quick fix but taken as part of a wider strategy for the ferry service.

"However, the continued delays have been particularly alarming given the condition of the existing fleet.

"More than 1,000 ferry sailings have been delayed over the past five years due to mechanical issues.

"Most industry experts agree that the average life expectancy is around 25 years — half of the 31 working state-owned ferries are older than that."

Ms Clark is calling for a three-point plan of action from the Scottish Government to come forward with a full ferry plan to invest in lifeline services, involving affected coastal and island communities every step of the way, ensure that trade unions are fully involved in any discussions with Transport Scotland and CalMac over any future tonnage and commission an independent review of the processes for public procurement of ferries to ensure lessons are learned going forward.