A cargo ship has run aground in a narrow stretch of sea separating Skye and the Highland mainland.

HM Coastguard was alerted at 01:00 to the incident in Kyle Rhea and lifeboats were launched from Kyle and Portree. A coastguard rescue team was also sent.

The 88m-long ship was later refloated and is now anchored in Glenelg Bay. No-one was injured.

A coastguard tug and a commercial tug have been placed on stand-by at the scene.

A ferry that has been out of action for nine months due to a string of repairs will not return until at least mid-November, CalMac has said.

MV Caledonian Isles usually operates on Arran's Ardrossan-Brodick route, but has been out of service since January when significant repairs had to be carried out.

It was due to return in September but a new gearbox fault was detected, prompting the latest delay.

CalMac has extended a temporary plan to cover routes, but warned its imminent annual maintenance schedule would see boats unavailable for a record periods of time.

The plan has included restoring a previous cancelled service to and from South Uist.

During the original overhaul of the Caledonian Isles, all four of its engines had to be removed.

It was originally thought the gearbox issue would take 10 days to fix, but will now take almost two months.

CalMac's interim chief executive Duncan Mackison said the ferry operator had anticipated a difficult winter and it was "shaping up to be just that".

He said: "The combination of MV Caledonian Isles ongoing technical issues and the start of this year’s maintenance window has created a perfect storm for ferry services."

CalMac said it was likely to hold regular reviews of where vessels are deployed.

Mr Mackinson said: "Our priority is to keep communities on the network informed of our plans, and meet service demands wherever we can.

"However, it is in inevitable there will be some disruption and on behalf of CalMac I apologise for that."

The first of four new ferries being built in Turkey has also been further delayed.

MV Isle of Islay had been expected to be delivered in mid October, but that date has been pushed back to mid February after previously being delayed until the end of this year.

A woman has died after she went overboard from a cruise ship near the Channel Islands, say rescue services.

An alert was sent out at about 02:00 BST for a search for the woman in her 20s north of Les Casquets rocks, west of Alderney.

The French search and rescue service said the casualty from the MSC Virtuosa was winched from the sea by a helicopter crew and was later pronounced dead by doctors.

One passenger told the BBC an alarm rang three times to signal a person had gone overboard.

The passenger, who only wanted to be called Neil, said those on board were asked to pray for their fellow passenger.

"I went up along with lots of other passengers to have a look," he said.

"About half an hour later the cruise director told us they were looking for a missing passenger so we would be delayed into Southampton."

The ship's owner MSC Cruises said in a statement: "A guest on board MSC Virtuosa went overboard on 12 October, while the ship was sailing to Southampton.

"The body was later recovered with the involvement of the authorities.

"We are deeply saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts are with the family during this difficult time.

"Out of respect for their privacy, we will not be providing further details."

The investigation into the death is being led by French police.

A plane from Channel Islands Air Search was sent to the scene from Guernsey, along with lifeboat crews from Alderney and France and the French helicopter crew based near Cherbourg.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said officers were assisting with inquiries.

"It has been reported that the woman went overboard the MSC Virtuosa during the early hours... and subsequently died," the force said.

The Maltese-flagged cruise ship is 331m (1,086ft) long and 43m (141ft) wide, according to MarineTraffic, external, with accommodation for up to 6,334 passengers and 1,704 crew.

The vessel is 19 decks tall, according to MSC, external, and was built in France in 2020.

It is currently berthed at Southampton docks, having arrived at about 08:00 from Cartagena Port in Spain.

History
Malta
Name	MSC Virtuosa
Owner	MSC Cruises
Operator	MSC Cruises
Port of registry	Valletta,  Malta
Ordered	1 February 2016
Builder	Chantiers de l’Atlantique
Cost	€800 million (2016)
Yard number	H34
Laid down	27 February 2019
Launched	29 November 2019
Sponsored by	Sophia Loren
Christened	27 November 2021
Acquired	1 February 2021
In service	2021–present
Identification	Call sign: 9HA5209 IMO number: 9803625 MMSI number: 215610000
General characteristics
Class and type	Meraviglia Plus-class cruise ship
Tonnage	181,541 GT
Length	331.43 m (1,087.4 ft)
Beam	43 m (141.1 ft) (moulded) 50 m (164.0 ft) (max)
Height	64.9 m (213 ft)
Decks	16
Speed	22.3 kt (21,900 long tons; 24,600 short tons)
Capacity	4,842 (double occupancy) 6,334 (maximum capacity)
Crew	1,704

Ferry fares in Scotland will increase by 10% from next year, the Scottish government has confirmed.

The rise will take effect from 1 January 2025 on the Northern Isles network and from 28 March on the west coast.

CalMac's services in the west have been under particular pressure due to ageing vessels, with the main Arran ferry out of action for most of the year.

Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop said a fare freeze in place this year had cost £10m and it would be "too challenging to continue".

She said fares were frozen for 2023-24 instead of a 9.1% inflationary increase to help people and businesses during the cost of living crisis and recovery from the Covid pandemic.

But in a letter to Holyrood's net zero, energy and transport committee, external she said: "Reluctantly, we are having to raise ferry fares in the coming year by 10%, bringing fare levels back to around what they would have been had fares not been frozen in 2023-24.

"This means, in real terms, fares have broadly increased in line with inflation over time.

"That will help to partially recover the previous freeze, address some of the significant budget pressures and allow the continued support of the ferries network in future years."

Ferry services remain under pressure, with the long-delayed new CalMac ferry Glen Sannox expected to face another short delay before it is delivered.

The Ferguson Marine shipyard has said the ship's final acceptance trials were an "overall success", external but some issues that arose meant details of a revised handover date would be given shortly.

That means ship will probably not carry passengers until January because CalMac plans to carry out 6.5 weeks of crew familiarisation, and the vessel is booked into dry dock for a fortnight in December to begin its annual maintenance cycle.

Its sister ship Glen Rosa is still under construction in Port Glasgow, and due for delivery next September. Both ships were originally meant to be delivered in 2018, but have faced repeated design challenges and other issues.

Four other new CalMac vessels being built in Turkey have also seen delays, with delivery of the first one now put back by a further two months to next March., external

The state-owned ferry operator faces a challenging period as it tries to maintain services over winter, when vessels need to be withdrawn for annual maintenance.

The current main Arran ferry Caledonian Isles has been out of action for repairs since February, with a new fault delaying its return to mid-November, while another vessel, Hebridean Isles, is due for retirement next month.

Scottish Conservative transport spokesperson Sue Webber said the fares announcement "will feel like a slap in the face" to island communities.

"Those reliant on CalMac for lifeline ferries have endured a sub-standard service for years due to the SNP's incompetent procurement of new vessels," she said.

"The transport secretary says these rises are necessary - but they wouldn't have been had the SNP not wasted hundreds of millions of pounds on two new vessels which have still to carry a single passenger several years after they were due to come into service."