PROPOSED legislation aimed at strengthening and protecting island communities in Scotland has been published at Holyrood.
The Islands (Scotland) Bill involves a requirement to “island proof” future laws and policies and to give the Western Isles Scottish parliamentary constituency statutory protection against boundary changes.
Further measures in the bill include changes to regulations to enable council wards on the islands with one or two members, and the creation of a National Islands Plan which will be reported on each year.
The proposed law would also enable Scottish ministers to set up a local authority licensing scheme for development in waters around the islands.
The new bill was brought forward after island councils joined together to put pressure on the government through the Our Islands Our Future campaign.
Islands Minister Humza Yousaf said: “This government is committed to promoting islands’ voices, to harnessing islands’ resources and enhancing their well-being. The measures in this bill underpin this ambition.
“In particular, the provision to ‘island-proof’ decision-making across the public sector will ensure the interests of islanders are reflected in future legislation and policy from the very outset.
“The National Islands Plan will set out the strategic direction for supporting island communities, continuing the momentum generated by the ‘Our Islands Our Future’ campaign and the work of the Islands Strategic Group.
“This is the first ever bill for Scotland’s islands, marking a historic milestone for our island communities.”
James Stockan, the leader of Orkney Islands Council, welcomed the publication of the bill, and applauded the efforts of the Our Island Our Future campaign.
He said: “The Our Islands Our Future campaign specifically asked for an Act for the islands in 2013 and it is gratifying to see this objective being realised.
“Island proofing is particularly important as evidenced by Orkney Islands Council’s substantive response to the Scottish Government’s consultation.
“We were able to amply demonstrate numerous cases where legislation had been detrimental to Orkney and which could have been avoided if island proofing had taken place.
“We will be working tirelessly with the Scottish Government to ensure that there is an objective standard by which decisions over whether to conduct an Islands Communities Assessment are made and also how the legislation will be interpreted.”
“We hope to have a meaningful role in the development of this guidance and will be working closely with the Minister for Transport and Islands Humza Yousaf through the Islands Strategic Group to achieve this.”
Roddie Mackay, leader of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, said the bill was “a significant step forward against depopulation, one of the greatest threats to our island way of life”.
Margaret Davidson, leader of Highland Council and responsible for public services on several islands, said the new bill recognised “the importance of island communities” and the “valued contribution they make”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here