whalsa

​Well to be honest I am disappointed Ryan Thomson didn't win, although he did well. However, I am very relieved that the SNP didn't get in. They threw the kitchen sink at it and still only got ~30% of the vote. ​I still firmly believe some form of Autonomy is the way forward for Shetland, if we elect an SNP MSP then the chances of that ever happening are greatly diminished.

But what have the SNP done for Shetland since taking power? Besides promising things before elections then reneging that is. It shouldn't matter what party your MSP belongs to, vital services should be properly funded in all parts of the country. For far too long Holyrood have relied on the SIC dipping in to it's reserves to prop up struggling services which really should be funded by central government. That is not what the oil money was for. They have coveted it since we got it. Why bother using their budgets when they know fine well that the socially conscious Shetland Councillors will spend their own resources rather than make unpalatable cuts. This has to end or we will have nothing left.

I started, den gave up twaree sentences in. I hae nae interest in readin aboot folks personal gripes we each idder and bringin folks families intae da discussion. Poor craic. Dirs too much o dat kind o thing on Fissbook and da Shetland Times website. ​As he is wont to do, John Tulloch has presented some excellent points but in an abrasive manner which is likely to switch people off. ​What he says regarding the SNP and their fear of Shetland autonomy is true, I have been promoting the autonomy idea for years and as a result have been subject to online abuse by, you guessed it, SNP supporters. ​Shetland contributes vastly more to the national pot than we receive in return, that is without even including oil revenues. The maritime EEZ of an autonomous Shetland would be vast and would include many of the best fishing grounds and oil/gas fields. Holyrood knows this. They are well aware the case for independence would be severely weakened without Shetland. ​This is precisely why we need a new Shetland Movement. If there is to be another independence referendum we need a pro-Shetland party to be pushing for Shetland to get Faroese style autonomy out of the deal, either with Scotland or rUK. Otherwise, as we have seen in this election, we will just be a pawn for the mainland parties.

I don't know about everyone else but I am utterly fed up with this election campaign. Mainly from the drivel and empty promises being spewed by the SNP but also by the arrogant and disrespectful tactics of the Lib Dems. ​I would be delighted if Ryan Thomson could pull off a shock and beat them both. Neither Party has Shetland's interests at heart. I am sure Beatrice does and, though I have never met Tom Wills I accept that he probably does as well. The problem lies with their centralized leadership. Tom Wills would be utterly unable to criticize any SNP decision which negatively affects Shetland (which happens often) whilst Beatrice would be hampered with the issue of having to toe the Party line regarding opposing the SNP at every opportunity until the independence question is settled. I fear neither would have the clout or freedom to actually solve any of Shetlands most pressing problems. ​An independent may not have the resources and support of a large political machine but at least they would be able to give criticism where it is due and not have to take orders from a Party HQ like some footsoldier in a seemingly endless war which tends to totally overlook the needs of Shetland. ​I see people going on about what the SNP have done for us but if you have been paying attention in recent years regarding their behavior towards the SIC then your rose-tinted glasses should have come off. They have repeatedly forced the Council into unsustainable budgetary positions by refusing to provide Fair Ferry Funding (remember this was promised years ago as another vote winning tactic). Why on earth anyone would believe these new promises about free foot passenger travel on our beleaguered internal ferry service is beyond me given they are not even funding the current service as they should be. ​There is also zero commitment on when, if and how our ageing fleet and infrastructure will be replaced. The importance of these internal links to the Isles, and Shetland, cannot be overstated. Unfortunately, it appears easily ignored from Edinburgh. ​I wish there was a pro-Shetland party pushing for autonomy, greater control of our resources and an end to living at the whim of some out of touch career politician sitting in Westminster or Holyrood who often wouldn't even manage point to Shetland on a map. ... that turned in to a bit of a rant

Good god what a lot of drivel in this article! Crime has reduced by 50% thanks to the increase in officers? I'd be interested in seeing more detail in those statistics. In Whalsay we rarely ever see a policeman so it is no wonder crime figures are down, Police Scotland have closed their recently built police station. When asked why Police are no longer stationed in the outer Isles the Chief Inspector replied they do not have the resources, where has the increase been? They have supported our internal ferry service? Everyone must be aware that they are consistently refusing to fully fund the revenue service, let alone commit to the capital funding of the much needed replacements. They have forced the Council to draw from it's reserves in order to make a balanced budget. Far from fighting to improve transport they are hindering it! Externally, they have bought unfit for purpose vessels that are under capacity. They have introduced parking charges at Sumburgh, are relocating air traffic control to Inverness and are refusing to pay air traffic controllers enough wages to hinder them going on strike (you might claim this is HIAL but they are just a Government quango). He also totally fails to mention the SNPs raison d'etre - Scottish Independence. Why that I wonder? Could it be because Shetland voted No and is traditionally against Scottish Independence? Shetland Islands Council has had it's funding cut by the SNP Government over and over again, more so than any other area. They are making conscious choices to starve local government of funding and force them to make cuts, how is that supporting rural communities? Mr Wills must think we are blind and have very short memories! https://www.thenational.scot/news/17785143.tom-willis-snp-good-shetland/?ref=fbshr&fbclid=IwAR3KGli_C_NMRtFuX495hAe9jOAGE29MRNMny-RnQnJcgI1o74oCADnZF5I

The short answer is that it is very easy to leave the EU: just declare Article 50 and wait two years. However, it is much harder to leave the EU and not severely damage the economy in the process, and MPs know that people who have lost their jobs and are unable to pay their mortgages are unlikely to vote for them in the next General Election. Our MP's have had nearly three years to sort out all the necessary trading arrangements for a smooth exit from the EU, but have spent this time arguing and squabbling amongst themselves. With "normal " changes in the world economy who knows what jobs are at risk Brexit or no Brexit. Climate change and all that goes with it poses a larger risk.IMHO. Is the Sullom Voe job threats a result of Brexit? The Sullom Voe job threats are nothing to do with climate change or Brexit. The oil is out there (West of Shetland mainly) and BP (and others) fully intend to extract it. The risk to SVT is that they are considering alternative routes which bypass SVT and Shetland altogether, such as offshore loading. This comes down to relevant risks and costs associated with the different methods and I very much doubt Brexit is a factor. Environment risk of offshore loading may (should) be considered but that is nothing to do with Climate Change either. As for Brexit, I will also be voting for the Brexit Party, simply because I still believe that, rightly or wrongly, the country voted to Leave and the more elected politicians who actually support that position the better, theoretically these lot SHOULD only be in position for a relatively short time period anyway... The drivel being spouted by some other parties locally about how we "should" vote, particularly re the fishing industry, is laughable.

The Moorfield is not a good example. For the first several years of it's life it had all 100 rooms booked permanently by Total. For the past couple of years it has had (I think) 80/100 rooms fully booked by Total. During this time period they have also received all the money for 2x meals a day, laundry and whatever their bar takings are. Completely different situation than any other hotel in Shetland.

Very cynical. That would be a blatant conflict of interest as well as a breach of the Councillors Code of Conduct. If you want to know why said Councillor is in favour of it why don't you ask him? I am sure he will tell you. Surely preferable to making implications of illegality and corruption online.

Just to be clear if affected residences in the area were not informed and given time to object then that is not acceptable and can rightly be complained about. As far as Symbister goes the old factory is not lying empty, a local engineer bought it and runs his marine engineering company from there.

The SIC does not dictate where a private company wants to build a facility, that will be down to the commercial objectives of the company. Of course without the new pier this development would have to go somewhere else but the company involved obviously thinks it is a convenient location or else they would be building it in another location regardless of the new pier. As someone else said, if the facility is properly managed then any odor should be negligible or non-existent for neighboring houses. From a personal point of view, if some development like this was proposed for my community I would be delighted, Whalsay has yet to recover from the blow of the fish factory closing - nobody complained about any smell, traffic etc from there!

I would suggest that you don't know many Shetland Councillors personally if you think they are all their to line their own pockets or anything else corrupt. I would also suggest you know little about Government procurement legislation or rules around appraisal and evaluation of projects. If you have evidence of wrongdoing then take it through proper channels. If not then I don't see why such wild accusations should be getting made in the first place.

Yes you also have to remember the cost of living can be 20-60% higher than the national average according to a recent Council report.

Yeah a taxi from the Isles to Lerwick is not cheap unless there is a lot of you and the last ferry home is generally to early for a night out.. plenty of beer in the Oot ower lounge and Whalsay Boating Club though. That being said some of the Lerwick hotels do discounted rates for Islanders. As has been said there are pros and cons to the outer isles but personally I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. Whalsay has great on island facilities and community spirit is second to none IMHO. The main con is obviously our inadequate ferry service - which will hopefully be improved in the relatively near future.

Hello Glad to hear you are thinking to move to Shetland. Without knowing more about you it is hard to give detailed advice but here is some points to consider; 1) Weather, I don't know what time of year you were here for your honeymoon and how the weather was but you need to be aware that the winters are long, dark, windy and wet. This is even more of an issue if you move to an Isle with a ferry journey. 2) Jobs, there is a labour shortage in Shetland so you should both be able to find some form of employment. However without knowing what you are qualified for I can't say if you would find a job in your normal field or not. 3) Housing, this can be relatively easy to find or extremely difficult depending on where you want to stay and what your price range is, in and around Lerwick being the hardest to find and most expensive. Conversely it can be easy to get social housing in some of the outlying areas and islands but then you will likely have to commute considerable distance to work, depending what jobs you get. Another point being unless you live in Lerwick a car is basically a necessity as the public transport network is limited at best. Hope this helps!

I think only about £3-4m of that is what is being deemed unsustainable. The Harbour Account and return from investments allows the Council to pay for services we otherwise wouldn’t have. The Council would have set a balanced and sustainbale budget if Holyrood had followed through on its promise of Fair Ferry Funding. The Council is under huge cost pressures from decreasing funding, increasing demand (e.g. more old folk needing care) as well as rising costs (e.g. the public sector pay cap beint lifted). I daresay efficiencies and savings can be made but attempts have been ongoing for at least the whole of this Council and the last one, meaning it is getting harder and harder to find savings without impacting front line services. One thing I firmly believe is we would not be in this position of managing decline if we had proper control over our own affairs and finances.

Absolutely outrageous. In the post Cllr Thomson spelled out several ways in which the government is failing shetland - all verifiable fact. He then went on to ask the question "If proven beneficial to Shetland, should we move towards becoming an Autonomous Region". The exact wording escapes me but that was basically it. The result was over 90% Yes. Facebook received a report of Hate Speech, removed the post, investigated and upheld the complaint, even on appeal. They say it breaches community standards but fail to explain exactly how. Unbelievable internet censorship.

Apparently said Poll has been reported and investigated for Hate Speech and so removed by Facebook...

Hmm... strangely after a few hours and 120 odd votes (over 90% in favour of Shetland autonomy) Ryan’s post has inexplicably disappeared..

A resurrection of this thread could be timely. https://www.facebook.com/1827209504230243/posts/2300086053609250/ A well written Facebook post by Councillor Ryan Thomson bemoaning the Governments continuous failure to treat Shetland fairly. Then posing the question would we be better off as an autonomous region. Bring it on I say!

Regardless, we have a constitution. It is incorrect to say we lack one. I don't agree that the conventions are intended solely to increase the power of the state, the conventions generally constrain and clarify the powers. There have been several attempts to simplify and condense the constitution, most recently by the Political and Constitutional Reform Select Committee - https://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/political-and-constitutional-reform/The-UK-Constitution.pdf I hope that recent events will hasten the process of constitutional reform We also need electoral reform IMO http://www.voterpower.org.uk/orkney-shetland

We are currently in an informed position? First I have heard! Still tons of contradicting information and predictions flying around. Ignorance and lies? Have a read of this article; https://www.forbes.com/sites/tedbromund/2019/01/31/are-brexit-supporters-ignorant/ Basically, both sides were as ignorant as each other.

I tend to agree with this assessment, and I believe that there has been a significant change in the information available to voters insomuch that it would be considered "significant material and/or circumstantial change" The fundamental problem was that Pro-Brexit politicians offered competing, contrary and detail-free visions of Brexit in order to gain support. The referendum question was a simplistic binary choice but the implementation has predictably proven to be a far from binary compromise as the detail has been worked out, given proper consideration and due diligence. Furthermore, polls indicate that there has been a material swing in opinion toward remain in the past two years e.g. https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-poll-predicts-swing-to-remain-in-second-brexit-vote/ So, regarding "blocking progress" - we have made little if any progress toward Brexit. If the majority of people are in favour of remaining, and we have not made any progress, I see no compelling reason why we should continue on the current Brexit trajectory. Personally, I don't agree with the principle of a 2nd referendum as I believe it is at odds to the functioning of the UK's representative democracy and I offer no solution beyond taking our foot off the accelerator and leaving it to parliament and a general election. The problem from day one has been the majority of MPs have been against Brexit from the outset, not to mention most of the media and other influential people. Great effort has gone into derailing the whole thing ever since the vote. People have been bombarded with a constant stream of doom and negativity, some of it utter drivel. Both sides behaved terribly before the vote but the failure of MPs to come together and work for the good of the country to enact the result of the referendum has been borderline criminal.

Full independence may well be a step too far for Shetland, certainly initially anyway. Meaningful self-governance/autonomy is perfectly realistic though. The EU couldn't "grab" our fish and oil, Faroe, Iceland and Norway manage to look after theirs quite well. The EU may grab our fish if an Independent Scotland joined the EU though. Shetland contributes vast sums to national finances but we get little back in return. We need to find an alternate form of Government otherwise we will be trapped in inevitable constant decline and our hard won oil reserves will disappear.

^^^ Nail on the head Shetlander. Fare reductions would be brilliant, as would increased weekend runs (like the Whalsay residents are campaigning for) but the reality is Holyrood are not providing enough to cover the costs, leaving an even bigger hole in the SICs budget than previously predicted. The 5 million has not been "swallowed up into the general pot" it is going to help run the ferries so that the Councils ever thinning resources can be spent keeping other services going.

Fishermen saw a chance to exit the hated CFP and understandably supported it. If that chance is squandered by self serving politicians who made the promises then it is not the fault of the fishermen. Voting Remain would have meant an indefinite continuation of the status quo whilst supporting the SNP and Scottish Independence would very likely end up with rejoining of the EU and the CFP, possibly under worse terms than exist now. It is clear to me that very very few people south of Fair Isle give even the slightest concern to the needs of Shetland. Whilst we continue pouring money South for it never to return we will continue to be ignored on the periphery. Perhaps the upcoming Islands Bill may help on that front but IMO will never go far enough to protect our interests.