I do not know what protections Serco were asking for but I suspect that they might have been asking for a rebate on the price they were paying to operate the contract if the Scottish Government owned ferries kept breaking down because the Scottish Government were failing to keep their ferry fleet operating on the Clyde and Hebridean ferry routes up to date. This was back in 2016 several months before the Scottish Government were to announce who had won the contract to operate the Clyde and Hebridean ferry routes on behalf of Transport Scotland.
This tendering process had to be introduced back in the early 2000’s as a result of EU rules.
My wife and I were present at a public meeting in the Gaelic College on Islay where the new ferry for Islay was being discussed and the new operating contract for the Clyde and Hebridean ferry routes which was to be introduced in a couple of years as a result of EU rules..
A maritime expert at the meeting (not me!) stated that there was nothing to prevent (at that time) for the management of an operating company to employ a Filipino crew who would be happy to be paid 30% of the wages paid to the Calmac crews and six weeks holiday per annum.
This maritime expert also informed the members of the public at the meeting that Calmac crews on the car ferries work 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off which results in them only working 23 weeks per year once statutory annual leave and public holidays are taken into account.
He also told the meeting that the master (captain) of the car ferry only had to have an EU ticket to operate the ferry.
I have never forgotten this information.
In the event one by one companies who had expressed an interest withdrew before the bidding started leaving Calmac as the only bidding company (bidco) left.
That is why the fares on the Calmac ferries are high.
They could be a lot lower for island residents on the Clyde and Hebridean ferry routes if Scottish Government used the same ferry fare structure as Serco use on the Northlink sailings.
About 8 years ago I was told by a Calmac pier manager that the Transport Scotland operating contract for the Clyde and Hebridean ferry routes is basically the same as the operating contract on the Northlink sailings but the Scottish Government continue to persist with their ‘flagship’ one size fits all RET system.
It has been well documented that it is ridiculous that tourists from all over the world pay the same fare on the Calmac ferries as local island residents.
This is not the case on Northlink sailings.