July 13th, 2011

Greenock and Inverclyde MSP Duncan McNeil has hailed the Tall Ships event as a great success after attracting more than 700,000 visitors over four days.

Mr McNeil has put down a motion in the Scottish Parliament praising Sail Inverclyde for its handling of the event and insisted it was a great showcase for Inverclyde.

He said: “This was a fantastic occasion for both the people of Inverclyde and visitors alike and I am glad we were able to attract such big crowds to the event.

“It was a fantastic spectacle to see so many families enjoying the sight of these magnificent ships on the Clyde and enjoying the entertainment that was provided.

“I would like to pay tribute to Helen Drummond and the fantastic team at Sail Inverclyde for putting together such as successful event and I was one of thousands of people from Inverclyde who had a great time.

“More importantly, this was a fantastic showcase for Inverclyde and I hope that many of our visitors will have left with a good impression of the area.”

Motion

That the Scottish Parliament recognises the tremendous success of the Tall Ships Race 2011, which attracted more than 700,000 people to Inverclyde over a four-day period from July 9th-12th to see the 57 magnificent vessels participating in the race and the fantastic array of shore entertainment, including live performances from Lulu, Deacon Blue and The Magic Numbers and a flypast from the Red Arrows on the final day, bringing a significant economic and tourism boost to the area, notes this is the first time that the Tall Ships have visited Inverclyde since the spectacular success of the 1999 event, salutes the hard work of project manager Helen Drummond and the team at Sail Inverclyde for organising such a well-run and popular event for local people and visitors alike, and welcomes this fantastic showcase for the Inverclyde area.