Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Five-year extension for emergency tug

Herakles, based in Kirkwall, is the only emergency tug in north waters
Herakles, based in Kirkwall, is the only emergency tug in north waters

There were celebrations last night as the only emergency tug serving north and northwest Scotland was saved for another five years – but the UK Government has infuriated campaigners by refusing to reinstate a second vessel.

The coastline will continue to depend on the single emergency towing vessel (ETV) Herakles, based on Orkney, for emergency responses.

The Herakles was due to be removed from service in September, leaving no cover for swathes of Scotland’s coast.

But yesterday, confirmation of the five-year funding pledge was welcomed by community leaders and politicians in the north.

However, concern remained about maritime safety and the marine environment now transport chiefs have again ruled out a designated ETV for the often treacherous waters of the Minches.

The Westminster government intended to scrap Herakles from the autumn but an immediate outcry prompted a full inquiry into the risk potential.

The ETVs were recommended by Lord Donaldson in his report into the sinking of the Braer oil tanker in 1993.

An example of the need for ETVs was an incident in October 2010 – two days after the announcement was made to remove the tugs – when the Stornoway vessel was called to assist the nuclear-powered submarine HMS Astute which ran aground off Skye.

UK transport chiefs yesterday (WED) confirmed that the money would be found to maintain the single tug.

Earlier this year, UK Transport Minister Robert Goodwill asked the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to look at alternative options.

He has concluded that “there is a strong case for the UK Government to step in to allow this vital service to continue.”

He said: “This service is absolutely critical to ensuring emergency services can respond swiftly to incidents off the coast of Scotland.”

The MCA review concluded the commercial towage market “cannot currently reliably meet the need for a dedicated service to cover the seas around Scotland.”

Scottish Secretary David Mundell said: “The UK Government has listened to what they have said.”

Former Highland Council leader Michael Foxley, who fought a long campaign to have a second Scottish tug reinstated, also welcomed the news.

But he added: “We need one back in the Minches, we need one based at Stornoway. It should be crewed and fuelled up and on active service – in the waters between Orkney and Shetland and the middle of the Minches.”

Current Highland Council leader Margaret Davidson was also cautious, welcoming the announcement but reserving further judgment until she had digested the detail of the new arrangements.

Her Western Isles counterpart Angus Campbell was disappointed.

He said: “The number of incidents over the past few years highlight the serious risks around our coastal waters. The extension of the north-based ETV contract clearly demonstrates that the government also realises the dangers.”

The current cost of operating Herakles is just over £3million per year. The MCA will go out to the open market to tender for a new ETV contract commencing on October 1.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Office said: “Operational experience over the past five years of having one ETV has demonstrated that a single vessel has been sufficient to meet the needs of the industry.”