These are beautiful, iconic vessels that have provided reliable, safe and enjoyable service to millions of passengers on Sydney Harbour over the past 40 years.

As time has passed, be it because of general public outcry or an emerging consensus that the replacement vessels simply aren't safe or suitable for the crossing of Sydney Heads, the government has been forced to progressively commit itself to retaining three of the four ferries it had condemned.

I have written to Transport Minister Rob Stokes and Treasurer Matt Kean, outlining my plan to save the fourth Freshwater ferry and provide a jump-start to the Newcastle ship building industry by bringing back a local shipbuilding icon, and rebuilding it with clean, electric propulsion for a new life on the Manly run.

Sydney Ferries' fleet of four Freshwater ferries were designed and built by workers in Newcastle, at the old State Dockyard in Carrington.

Over the course of 45 years, the State Dockyard built dozens of ferries, cargo ships, naval frigates and passenger ships.

We can build them here again.

When the NSW Government announced last year that all Freshwater ferries would be scrapped, scuttled or sold off, the first to be mothballed in anticipation of that fate was MV Queenscliff.

It has been in storage at Cockatoo Island on the Parramatta River since its last day of revenue service.

Sitting alongside it is another Freshwater ferry, the MV Narrabeen.

Days ago, Narrabeen was saved from the scrappers when new Transport Minister Rob Stokes ordered a full engine rebuild and refit so that she can return to service on the Manly run.

This major work should guarantee Narrabeen's useful service life for many more years.

Minister Stokes' decision is the right one, and proves that the local design and skilled workmanship that went into these Freshwater ferries, almost 40 years old, still outperforms and outlasts the cheap, supposedly "modern" replacements.

Those boats, an imported copy of a Tasmanian designed inner-Harbour vessel, have failed to perform in big swells across Sydney Heads.

They've been beset with mechanical difficulties, and are currently clogging the slipways of Sydney Harbour requiring repairs to their rudders, propeller shafts and sheet metal.

With Stokes' admission the new vessels simply aren't up to scratch, the only remaining question is what to do with Queenscliff. It too is due for a major refit, engine rebuild and the maritime safety re-certification process that is required by law every five years.

My suggestion to the NSW Government is to bring Queenscliff back to Newcastle and to rebuild it as a proof-of-concept electric ferry for the Manly run.

We know that the hull and superstructure are both sound and we also know that the design is perfect for crossing Sydney Heads, but the fumbles and missteps by the NSW Government so far should not stand in the way of a good idea.

Rather than buying cheap, unsuitable, and unreliable replacements that lock us into dependency on diesel fuel for another 40 years, let's use the Queenscliff to showcase Newcastle's engineering skill and ingenuity.

Let's restart and then immediately future-proof our maritime manufacturing industry on the shores of Newcastle Harbour by investing in modern, electric ferry technology, and let's start by converting one of the best we've ever built; the mighty Freshwater class ferry.

Electric ferry technology is already in use in harbours around the world, with New Zealand, Norwegian and Danish ferry operators investing in clean, electric propulsion systems.

What's more, unlike doing major engine work on the family car, repowering a large ferry with new technology is commonplace and normal over the useful life of a ship's structure.

We have a golden opportunity to invest in new, clean technology, deliver hundreds of skilled manufacturing jobs, and restore a majestic home-grown ship to daily service on the run for which she was designed and built just 38 short years ago.

Let's not miss this opportunity through spite or a lack of government imagination, let's do right by the Queenscliff and let's get Newcastle building and designing the world's best ferries once again.

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