An Estonian cruise ship commissioned by the Scottish Government docked in Leith Harbour on Wednesday morning, Edinburgh Evening News reports.
The MS Victoria made her grand appearance in Edinburgh as she was berthed in Scotland's largest enclosed deep-water port.
The 190 metre long ship can accommodate up to 2,500 passengers, and boasts over 700 cabins. Prior to the ship's latest commission, the vessel sailed through the Baltic sea on leisure trips.
Now, the ferry is being prepared for a different type of visitors. The Scottish Government recently announced that approximately 730 Ukrainian refugees will live aboard MS Victoria while permanent accommodation is completed.
The refugees will be temporarily housed on the ship while docked in Edinburgh as 200 council properties are renovated in Lanarkshire to provide permanent housing solutions.
The super sponsor scheme previously allowed Ukrainians to travel to Scotland with the Government listed as the named sponsor on visa applications as part of the Homes for Ukraine route. Local councils were then responsible for looking after refugees until permanent homes could be found.
However, the Government recently announced that the program will be paused for three months due to unprecedented demand.
Arrivals under the super sponsor scheme have gone up by 20 percent, resulting in the need for a temporary extension to the scheme, the Scottish Government said. The pause will allow the Scottish Government to ensure safe accommodation can continue to be provided to those who have already applied and may now travel to Scotland.
"With a recent decrease in people applying for private sponsorship in England, and Wales having paused their own scheme, the number of applications naming the Scottish Government has increased considerably in recent weeks," said Neil Gray, minister with special responsibility for refugees from Ukraine.
