Australian 'fiasco' ferry leaves Edinburgh after months docked in the capital

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info
A huge Australian ferry has finally left Edinburgh after months in the capital.
On Thursday morning, June 19, the Spirit of Tasmania IV ship was pictured leaving Leith docks.
In December we reported how the ship was set to be berthed in the capital until 2026 after it was found to be too big for its intended ports Down Under.
Operator TT-Line said it had been engaging with a broker to lease the ferry, although an agreement could not be reached.
The Tasmanian government then ordered the operator to relocate the 212-metre vessel. It was originally moved to Scotland due to fears it could be damaged by pack ice.
The saga sparked a political row in Australia after a new berth to accommodate the shop, and its sister vessel Spirit of Tasmania V, may not be ready until late 2026 or 2027.
The new Spirit of Tasmania ships have a gross tonnage of 48,000 and have a capacity of 1,800 passengers. The vessel features 301 new cabins, 118 standard recliners and 47 business recliners.
Tasmania's infrastructure minister, Michael Ferguson, and the chairman of ferry operator TT-Line, which is state-owned, resigned due to the controversy in August.
TT-Line was paying A$47,534 (£24,031) per week to berth the ship at Forth Ports, according to figures published by the Tasmanian government.
Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.
In March we reported there was a possibility of the ferry being used to house Ukrainian refugees in Scotland.
However the Scottish government quickly dismissed this saying: "This is not true and we have no plans to lease this or any other vessel for this purpose."
Tasmania's transport minister Eric Abetz said that the government had done all it could to secure a lease that would benefit Tasmanians.
He said: "We had an opportunity to secure an agreement worth tens of millions of dollars for the Tasmanian taxpayer, and it would have been economically irresponsible not to explore this.
"Previous similar leases provided more than €50m (£41.2m) to vessel owners, and it was prudent that we sought similar arrangements for Tasmanian taxpayers.
"The relentless negativity is hurting the state's economic opportunities, and it's time to move forward together."

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Edinburgh Live

5 hours ago

• Edinburgh Live

Eager Edinburgh customers in huge queue stretching up road as new cafe opens

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Hundreds of Edinburgh customers were spotted in a huge queue on a busy street to celebrate the opening of a new bubble tea shop. The team at HeyTea previously announced the opening of their new location in the capital and they officially welcomed customers in on Friday morning. Based at South Bridge, fans of the chain flocked to the new venue to make the most of the 'buy one get one free offer' and hoped to get their hands on the Edinburgh themed magnets - prompting a huge queue. A video taken opposite the road shows the line stretching up South Bridge as customers couldn't wait to get their hands on a drink. A post on Instagram reads: "A fresh sense of taste, awakened by the history tucked in the alleyways. Brew a pot of tea, adding a bit of depth, a bit of layers. "Feel it, gather it, and wait, for another renaissance to unfold. "Grand opening on 20th June. Buy one get one free on our exclusive opening menu. Limited-edition Edinburgh fridge magnets available." An application for HeyTea branded signage was submitted to Edinburgh Council in February of this year and approved in late March. The shop will occupy the premises formerly occupied by another bubble tea shop, HI TEA, now closed. HeyTea is a popular bubble tea brand originating in China. They brand themselves as starting the "new tea style", which innovates traditional tea by adding ingredients like milk, fruit, and various toppings. They sell fruit tea and milk teas, experimenting with unusual ingredients like cheese foam. Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sentstraight to your messages. Their website reads: "As the originator of the New Style Tea, we hav ebeen infusing our teas with eccentric inspiration, giving traditional tea a new life. We want to create a tea brand for young minds who are tired of mediocracy and who dare to drink differently." This will be the franchise's second Scotland store after their first opened in Glasgow. The brand also operates a number of cafes in London and Manchester. They also operate stores across the world in Australian, America, Canada, and Asia.

Time Out

17 hours ago

• Time Out

One Sydney university has ranked among the world's 20 best in the QS World University Rankings

Sydney's good looks are rarely under question, but it's always nice to be reminded that the Harbour City is more than just a pretty face. Recently, Sydney ranked as one of the most liveable cities in the world (not factoring in cost of living), and in seventh place on the prestigious 2025 Global Cities Index. Now, the QS World University Rankings for 2026 have just dropped, revealing which institutions stand in the best stead for the year ahead. One Sydney university cracked the top ten – hats off to you, than 1,500 institutions from around the world were assessed for the 2026 rankings, including 36 from Australia. The top five were pretty similar to last year, with MIT holding onto first place with a perfect score of 100, followed by Imperial College London, Stanford, Harvard and Cambridge. Australia's highest-ranked institution was the University of Melbourne, which landed 19th on the global list. And just one position behind was the University of New South Wales (UNSW), which held onto its place among the top 20 universities in the world for the third consecutive year. Its overall score of 90.7 saw it drop one position from 19th in 2025, but it maintained impressive ratings for academic reputation (96.3) and ranked equal 12th in the world for sustainability. Of the 36 Australian institutions assessed, UNSW placed first in the employment outcome and international research network categories. Overall, two-thirds of Australia's ranked universities dropped in this year's rankings. Meanwhile, only seven climbed higher, including Monash University's jump from 37th to 36th. The University of Sydney slipped out of the top 20, landing at 25th, with the Australian National University and the University of Queensland also dropping two spots to 32nd and 42nd, respectively. Despite the overall decline, we think it's still pretty impressive that nine Australian universities still made the top 100 worldwide. You can check out the full rankings here. Here are the 20 best universities in the world Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA Imperial College London, UK Stanford University, USA University of Oxford, UK Harvard University, USA University of Cambridge, UK ETH Zurich, Switzerland National University of Singapore, Singapore University College London, UK California Institute of Technology, USA The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Chicago, USA Peking University, China University of Pennsylvania, USA Cornell University, USA Tsinghua University, China University of California, Berkeley, USA University of Melbourne, Australia University of New South Wales, Australia Yale University, USA Here are the 10 best universities in Australia University of Melbourne University of New South Wales University of Sydney Australian National University Monash University University of Queensland University of Western Australia Adelaide University University of Technology Sydney RMIT University Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.

Time Out

19 hours ago

• Time Out

Two Australian universities have been ranked among the world's 20 best for 2026

Thinking of hitting the books again? Or just wondering where the brainiest students study these days? The prestigious QS World University Rankings for 2026 have just dropped, revealing which institutions stand in the best stead for the year ahead. Two Australian universities cracked the top ten for yet another year – but it's not all straight HDs, with 25 Aussie unis dropping in the rankings compared to 2025. More than 1,500 institutions from around the world were assessed for the 2026 rankings, including 36 from Australia. The top five were pretty similar to last year, with MIT holding onto first place with a perfect score of 100, followed by Imperial College London, Stanford, Harvard and Cambridge. Australia's highest-ranked institution was the University of Melbourne, which landed 19th on the global list. While it slipped six spots from 13th in 2025, its overall score actually rose 1.9 points to 90.8 – thanks to improved ratings in seven of the nine ranking indicators. The uni earned a near-perfect 99.7 for academic reputation (the highest in Australia) and also ranked first in the country for employer reputation and sustainability. Hats off to you, UoM! Just one position behind was the University of New South Wales (UNSW), which held onto its place among the top 20 universities in the world for the third consecutive year. Its overall score of 90.7 saw it drop one position from 19th in 2025, but it maintained impressive ratings for academic reputation (96.3) and ranked equal 12th in the world for sustainability. Of the 36 Australian institutions assessed, UNSW placed first in the employment outcome and international research network categories. Overall, two-thirds of Australia's ranked universities dropped in this year's rankings. Meanwhile, only seven climbed higher, including Monash University's jump from 37th to 36th. The University of Sydney slipped out of the top 20, landing at 25th, with the Australian National University and the University of Queensland also dropping two spots to 32nd and 42nd, respectively. Despite the overall decline, we think it's still pretty impressive that nine Australian universities still made the top 100 worldwide. You can check out the full rankings here. Here are the 20 best universities in the world Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA Imperial College London, UK Stanford University, USA University of Oxford, UK Harvard University, USA University of Cambridge, UK ETH Zurich, Switzerland National University of Singapore, Singapore University College London, UK California Institute of Technology, USA The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong University of Chicago, USA Peking University, China University of Pennsylvania, USA Cornell University, USA Tsinghua University, China University of California, Berkeley, USA University of Melbourne, Australia University of New South Wales, Australia Yale University, USA Here are the 10 best universities in Australia University of Melbourne University of New South Wales University of Sydney Australian National University Monash University University of Queensland University of Western Australia Adelaide University University of Technology Sydney RMIT University 🧑🏻‍🎓