Member for Manly, James Griffin MP has said the Minns Labor Government’s decision to send the iconic Collaroy ferry to the scrapheap lets down the Manly community and ‘Save the Manly Ferry’ campaigners.
The announcement stands in stark contrast to assurances from NSW Labor prior to the 2023 election that the iconic Freshwater ferries would be retained. Those assurances echoed the Save the Manly Ferries Committee’s claim that the Freshwater-class ferries had up to 40 years of service life remaining.
“Sadly, most people were of the belief that the State Labor Government and ‘Save the Manly Ferries’ campaigners were saving all four Freshwater ferries, evidently that’s not the case,” Mr Griffin said.
“There was a very vocal local campaign that partnered with Labor who I am sure will reappear with equal ferocity to save the Collaroy. On a similar note, one has to marvel at the miraculous recovery of the Emerald-class vessels, which seem to have shed all their mechanical flaws once the 2023 election concluded and now run very effectively and efficiently.”
While the Government had previously withdrawn the Collaroy – the youngest of the four Freshwater-class ferries – from service due to its maintenance and renewal costs proving “prohibitively expensive,” it has now confirmed the vessel will be dismantled for scrap metal at a cost of $3.3 million.
In 2021, Mr Griffin campaigned against his own Government’s plans to replace the Freshwater fleet, successfully securing the retention of two vessels operating on weekends and public holidays.
Following the 2023 election, the Minns Labor Government raised hopes by investing $71 million in extending the life of the Freshwater class, only to announce shortly thereafter that the fleet would be retired by July 2030 and replaced by electric ferries. To date, the Government has provided no meaningful detail on these replacement vessels, or the electricity infrastructure that will be required to support them.
“In Opposition, the now Premier asked why such an iconic and permanent part of Sydney’s heritage should be lost. Perhaps the Government can answer their own question,” Mr Griffin said.
Last modified: July 22, 2026
