The Nautilus and RMT unions are optimistic that a government review of Scottish lifeline ferry services tendering will improve the lot of British seafarers.

They welcomed a move by Scottish transport minister Humza Yousaf to examine the legal, policy and financial implications affecting the procurement of key routes.

Nautilus said that following feedback from the European Commission, the review would assess whether Scottish ferries could be covered by the ‘Teckal exemption’ which enables some services to be operated by an in-house provider without the need for competitive tendering.

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