Official fears ferry service loss

The loss-making route was operated during the 1990s

The civil servant in charge of tendering for a new ferry service has said it could lose a considerable amount of public money.

Eddie Frizell warned Holyrood's audit committee that the new service from Campbeltown to Ballycastle in Northern Ireland may not be value for money.

He has asked for a special ministerial directive, making it plain that the risk lies with ministers, not with him.

The executive believes the service would benefit a disadvantaged area.

An experimental ferry service on the route for three summers in the 1990s ended in failure. A further attempt to seek bidders for the contract did not attract sufficient interest.

Transport Minister Nicol Stephen believes the crossing from Kintyre to the north Antrim coast would bring wider economic and social improvements to the area.

An annual public subsidy of £1m over five years is on offer for the contract, which also involves the Northern Ireland Office.