A new chairman has been appointed to the board at Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow.
Andrew Miller, who previously chaired the board at Prestwick Airport, will take up post from 1 December for three years.
He will be responsible for delivering ministerial priorities for the publicly-owned yard.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “Andrew Miller brings a wealth of experience from previous senior positions, and is clear on the strategic and commercial issues for the yard.
“I am confident that his experience will help to deliver Ministerial priorities – the completion of the two ferries, securing a future for the yard and its workforce, and supporting Scotland’s island communities that rely on this type of vessel on a daily basis.
“I would like to thank Robert Mackenzie for stepping into the role of interim chair while the recruitment process took place.”
The previous chair Alistair Mackenzie and board member John Hudson both announced they would step down at the end of January for 'personal reasons'; eventually leaving in April.
Miller will be paid in line with pay policy for board appointments at the rate of £500 per day, for five days each month.
Earlier this week, the Scottish Conservatives repeated calls for a public inquiry to be held into the CalMac ferries “fiasco”, making the plea five years after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon “launched” one of the vessels.
Sturgeon was at the launch ceremony for the Glen Sannox ferry on 21 November 2017, and at the time praised “state-of-the-art ferries” being built at the Ferguson Marine yard on the Clyde.
However, neither the Glen Sannox, or the other ferry being built for Caledonian MacBrayne - the currently unnamed Hull 802 - have entered service, with the construction of the two vessels running over time and over budget.
The two ferries are currently due to be delivered in 2023 and early 2024, at a potential cost of more than £300m, three times the initial £97m contract.
Scottish Conservative transport spokesman Graham Simpson said: “If the SNP had not botched this process at every single turn, then islanders could have enjoyed years of seamless travel by now.
“Instead, they have had to endure years of delays which has had a crippling effect on our island communities and they have little confidence that this nightmare will end anytime soon.”
He accused senior figures in the government of trying to “pass the blame” for the delays instead of “taking responsibility for their monumental failures”, adding: “That is why we urgently need a public inquiry to get to the truth of this fiasco once and for all.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government’s priorities have always been the completion of the two ferries, securing a future for the yard and its workforce, and supporting our island communities that rely on this type of vessel on a daily basis.
“We deeply regret that the vessels are taking longer and costing more than they should.
“We continue to urge Ferguson Marine to do all it can to bring down costs and meet the agreed delivery schedule.”
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