A major UK ferry operator has cancelled nearly 11,000 trips since January 2023, causing "chaos" for island communities in Scotland. CalMac, which operates ferries between the mainland and 22 major islands, has cancelled 10,809 sailings between January 2023 and the end of April this year due to technical faults, according to freedom of information data obtained by the Liberal Democrats.

Lib Dem MSP Jamie Greene argued that island communities were not receiving the same treatment as mainland citizens from the SNP. He said: "These figures reveal just how much chaos the SNP are causing island communities. Our island communities are being treated as second class citizens, lacking the basic right to access the same public services as mainland Scots."

"The SNP's failure to deliver new lifeline ferries has anchored islanders with an aging fleet that is in constant need of repair, at constant risk of cancellation and costing millions in repair bills.

"My constituents on the west coast are suffering the depressing reality of losing business, missing events and hospital appointments and, frankly, they have lost faith in the Scottish Government's ability to fix those problems."

A contract for four new ferries was awarded to a Cemre boatyard in Turkey to update the ageing fleet that had experienced technical problems. Last year, one boat was retired from service at 38 years old, following lengthy and costly repairs.

CalMac said it operated more than the number of scheduled sailings on 294 days out of the time period, and that it is common to divert ferries in adverse weather conditions.

A CalMac spokeswoman said: "The figures clearly show that CalMac operated more than 95% of all planned sailings since 2023. In a typical day we operate over 450 sailings and our staff work hard to provide a good service in challenging circumstances. In fact, poor weather remains the most common cause of disruption.

"In terms of technical problems, these do happen with an aging fleet and in increasingly challenging weather. However, the arrival of 13 new vessels by 2029, which started with MV Glen Sannox in January this year, will reduce these and modern vessels will improve the reliability and resilience of services across the whole network."