A PETITION calling for a vital tugboat to be returned to the Western Isles has been handed to the UK Government.

MPs Brendan O’Hara, Drew Hendry, Angus MacNeil, Dr Paul Monaghan and Ian Blackford presented the document to No 10 Downing Street urging the Government to urgently reinstate an emergency towing vessel (ETV) on the west coast of Scotland.

The petition, launched by Western Isles SNP councillors Rae MacKenzie and Gordon Murray last month, attracted almost 1,500 signatures in just a few days.

The ETV in Stornoway was removed in 2011 in a cost-cutting exercise.

Argyll and Bute MP O’Hara, together with his SNP colleagues at Westminster and local agencies, has argued that the west coast of

Scotland has been left vulnerable in the event of an emergency at sea.

O’Hara said: “As a maritime nation and representing a particularly remote maritime geography, having a tug at our disposal remains an insurance against what is an unlikely but equally plausible event.”

“While the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has concluded that a second tug vessel is not warranted, myself and my Highlands and Islands MP colleagues will continue to press the UK Government to rethink this matter.

“It was the UK Government’s decision to cut the ETV on the west coast and I hope that they will now listen to representations and take action to remedy this unfortunate situation.

“Reinstating an ETV on the west coast, at a relatively small cost to the UK Government, would help to protect lives at sea and also safeguard our precious environment.”

Scotland once had two ETVs available for towing ships that had grounded or broken down on its north and west coasts. One ship still operates out of the Northern Isles.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), which manages ETVs, has ruled out reintroducing a second tugboat.

The MCA said it had examined the case for two tugs in a consultation and an independent report earlier this year.

A spokesperson said: “The operational experience of the past five years has demonstrated that a single ETV has been sufficient to meet the needs for emergency towage. Given this evidence, it has been decided that a second ETV, delivered at taxpayer expense, is not warranted.”