£9.3m plans for Kilcreggan Harbour have been attacked as a ‘fait accompli’.
And concerns have been raised over a key body which was intended to communicate with communities over the project.
The new pontoon and breakwater have been designed not for Kilcreggan’s ferry, but to accommodate the new 40-metre vessels planned for the Dunoon route (below) as they would act as cover for maintenance and breakdowns.
Yet responses from Kilcreggan were removed from the results of a consultation into the new Dunoon vessels by officials at Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) – despite the survey itself stating it was ‘open to all interested individuals who travel via the Dunoon passenger vessels or have an alternative interest in the project’.
Read more: Public rejected Dunoon ferry design – then survey results were kept secret
CMAL kept the survey results secret after a majority of Dunoon respondents rejected the ferry design – the results were partly revealed after four months following an appeal to Scottish Freedom of Information Commissioner’s office, which is still investigating the issue.
At last week’s meeting of Cove and Kilcreggan Community Council Ali Mills said the situation was ‘a fait accompli’, and chairman Nick Davies agreed.
“How could they ignore the Kilcreggan ones? How could that even be a thing?” she asked.
“We have been completely ignored – what can we do as a community council, because this is quite serious.”
“The pier that we have to have depends on that boat that we haven’t been consulted on.
“What can we do about it? Do we just lie down and let them do what they want, or what can we actually do as a community council?”
Sheelagh O’Reilly said that a key document, the strategic business case, which was produced in 2020 had not been published by the Scottish Government.
” Because of this we don’t know the fundamental decisions they took which led to the decision to fund these larger ferries,” she said.
“Argyll and Bute Council seem to be in entirely responsive mode to the Scottish Government’s decision-making for the strategic business case – and the investment in the ferries and the consequences of the investment in the ferries is now driving the pier design for Gourock, Dunoon and Kilcreggan.
“Argyll and Bute are almost passive in the way they are reacting to Transport Scotland’s decisions.”
Meanwhile, CMAL has said that no minutes were taken for the reference group in which councillors and community councils were consulted about the project.
Terms of reference for the Gourock harbour reference group state that meetings would be held every 16 to 20 weeks, with agendas available seven days beforehand minutes given to members within 20 days.
But CMAL says that no minutes were taken for the Kilcreggan refence group.
At Tuesday night’s meeting Argyll and Bute provost Maurice Corry, who represents the Rosneath Peninsula on the reference group, said it hadn’t met since he was elected last May.
Afterwards he said he would expect minutes to be taken, and Conservative MSP and shadow transport minister Graham Simpson agreed.
“Transparency is essential, particularly when it comes to ferries, where we have had enough secrecy,” he said.
“Minutes of meetings should be available for everyone to see and communities should be involved in saying what their ferry service should be.”
CMAL has refused to comment on the absence of minutes.
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