MSC Cruises’ MSC Virtuosa was forced to cancel a planned call to Greenock today (9 June) because of Scottish Covid rules.

The seven-day cruise started when the line’s new ship made its maiden visit to Liverpool on 8 June, with plans to stop at Greenock, before moving on to Belfast, Southampton and Portland, before returning to Greenock and then a final stop at Liverpool the following day.

However, the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association (SPAA) said it had seen a copy of an email sent to current passengers on board MSC Virtuosa by the line which stated that: “Due to the latest Scottish government Covid 19 restrictions and regulations … we are sorry to inform you that the port call of Greenock has been cancelled. No guests are allowed to embark or disembark… This decision has been made by the Scottish government and is out of our control.”

The ship instead spent the night in Liverpool and is due to depart the city at around 7pm today (9 June).

The Scottish government has since released a statement confirming that “domestic cruises can restart when all of Scotland reaches level one” in its Covid-19 levels system.

We are delighted to announce that @MSC_Cruises_UK will be staying with us overnight! She will be with us at #CruiseLiverpool until tomorrow night, departure around 7pm ???????? ???? @spikeysnapperJ pic.twitter.com/PIDMhjiyul

— Cruise Liverpool (@CruiseLpool) June 8, 2021

The SPAA said that Scottish passengers were due to join the cruise in Greenock and an anticipated third of current passengers on board were expected to go ashore for excursions on 9 June. The SPAA added that it believed 75 per cent of those on board/due to board have been double vaccinated and have been triple tested.

SPAA president Joanne Dooey said: “We’re now facing the situation where Scottish passengers who joined the cruise in Liverpool are barred from setting foot in their own country.

“We’ve been advised that the Scottish government recognises that this ‘will be somewhat disheartening to the industry’, but this cruise route was a lifeline for Scottish travel agents and their passengers who want a holiday. We, as travel agents, are utterly devastated.”

The SPAA added that agents across Scotland “have also been informed… that departures on 16 and 23 June have also been cancelled.”

In a tweet, MSC Cruises stated it was “monitoring the situation, which is evolving very rapidly”.

In a statement, an MSC spokesperson said: “In light of the position advised by the Scottish government, MSC Virtuosa remained overnight in Liverpool and all guests affected by this announcement were contacted directly or through their travel agent.

“We continue to seek further clarity from the relevant authorities in Scotland about the situation and will continue to monitor the situation in the hope that our calls to Scotland with our special cruises can commence soon considering how much we were looking forward to welcoming our Scottish guests on board MSC Virtuosa.

“Our priority continues to be the health and safety of our guests, crew and the communities that we visit, to ensure that holidaymakers and local areas feel protected and confident this summer.”

Barrhead Travel president Jacqueline Dobson added: “The news… is yet another hammer-blow for the Scottish travel industry, Scottish holidaymakers and for regional tourism partners who were looking forward to welcoming UK guests ashore for excursions.

“Cruises from Greenock have been on sale for months, yet despite urgent calls from the industry, the Scottish government has provided less than 36 hours’ notice that these sailings cannot go ahead.

“Meaningful engagement with the Scottish travel industry is of paramount importance and we must see this take place over the coming weeks. It is unsustainable for the Scottish government to continue to make announcements without constructive consultation with key industry partners when these decisions have such a profound impact on business.”

The Scottish government added: “We explained our concerns about the transmission risks posed by cruise vessels in an update to industry on the 24 May and confirmed that we would clarify the position in June.

“Following extensive engagement with stakeholders, we have now confirmed that domestic cruises can restart when all of Scotland reaches level one and we have made industry, including the operator, aware of this.”

In a statement, CLIA said: “The decision not to allow cruise ships to enter Scotland at this time is very unfortunate. Currently, cruise ships calling at UK ports have UK-only guests on board, including many from Scotland.