Ferguson Marine will build a small number of tugboats for speculative sale on the commercial market while the Scottish Government has yet to submit a formal case to competition authorities for four vessels it promised to the Port Glasgow shipyard six months ago, Economy and Transport Secretary Stephen Flynn confirmed. The plans, announced in March, covered two small CalMac electric ferries for the Sounds of Barra and Harris routes, plus a marine protection vessel and a marine research vessel. Flynn told Holyrood he expected a principles assessment to be submitted to the Competition and Markets Authority for formal pre-referral assessment in the coming weeks, with a final submission to follow. Since March, he said, vessel designs had been developed and the viability of a proposed £14.2 million government-funded yard modernisation assessed. Meanwhile, the yard's only current work, completing the delayed CalMac ferry Glen Rosa, is due to finish within three months, with 70 job losses announced, though Flynn said none would be compulsory. He said approving working capital for the tugboat work was a "sensible commercial approach" that would retain shipbuilding capability and skills, offering a pipeline of work into next year. Opposition politicians reacted angrily. Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr accused ministers of "gross ministerial incompetence or a con", saying no contracts had been awarded despite claims before the election that orders were imminent. Liberal Democrat spokesperson Willie Rennie said the government had failed to carry out proper legal checks before promising a direct award, while Labour's Neil Bibby demanded a firm commitment to deliver the promised contracts.