Island ferry takeover sparks concern from MPs

Red Funnel ferries operate from Town Quay in Southampton

The Isle of Wight's two MPs have said they are concerned about another private equity firm taking over key ferry routes.

Red Funnel - owned by private equity firms since the early 1990s - is being taken over by Njord Partners, a UK-based company, which said it would "strive to generate superior investment returns".

Conservative Joe Robertson said it was a "bad day for the island" and expressed concern over potential redundancies, while Labour's Richard Quigley urged the company to "listen to us first-hand" if it was "serious" about addressing concerns.

In a statement issued on Monday, Njord Partners said it would be "delivering high-quality, reliable, and friendly services across the Solent."

Mr Robertson, who represents Isle of Wight East, said: "While cross-Solent ferry connections are treated purely as a revenue generator for investors in an unregulated framework, island residents and visitors will continue to pay inflated prices."

MP Joe Robertson said the deal was "a bad day for the island"

Mr Quigley, who represents Isle of Wight West, said he was also concerned.

He said he was looking forward to meeting the maritime minister to raise his concerns about the "lifeline service being treated as a cash machine for private equity".

Both MPs said they had no contact from Njord Partners before the announcement but that they would be keen to meet them.

The Solent Transport Users Group, formerly known as the Wightlink Users Group, said it would be increasing its activities and protests after the announcement.

Bronwyn Hamilton-Brown, its spokesperson, said: "Islanders are still facing extortionate fares for an unreliable service... so we are completely disappointed another private company like this has taken over."

A group of five Island businessmen have formed a group called Vectis and had made an alternative bid, but were unsuccessful.

'Island first'

Their chairman, Patrick Seely, said their business plan committed to an every-30-minute service using smaller aluminium ferries made by Wight Shipyard.

He said they were still hoping to work with Njord Partners to talk about their "island first" long-term investment in the service, which had the "least cost operations".

In its original statement, Jakob Kjellberg, founding partner at Njord Partners, said the company was "excited" to support Red Funnel's next chapter and would be seeking to "restore its financial health and empower its people to deliver the reliable, efficient service that islanders and visitors deserve".

It is unclear what the takeover will mean for the future of the Hythe ferry.

Red Funnel is the parent company of The Hythe ferry company, which has been out of action since August 2024.

Repairs are needed to the pontoon at the end of Hythe pier.

Njord Partners has been approached for further comment in response to the MPs' criticism.