Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

MSP calls for taskforce to tackle Shetland area facing depopulation crisis

Shetland MSP Tavish Scott
Shetland MSP Tavish Scott

Shetland Island Councils has been urged to show “leadership” and form a multi-agency taskforce to tackle the declining population on Skerries.

The population has more than halved in recent years, and the primary school was recently mothballed after its only pupil moved up to Lerwick’s Anderson High School. The closure resulted in the loss of four part-time jobs.

Now local MSP Tavish Scott wants the council to look at ways to stop the decline further.

As a result, local authority leader Gary Robinson has said he wants to hear from islanders about their concerns before any action can be taken.

Skerries’ salmon farm also closed in 2015, leading to the loss of six jobs, while the school’s secondary department was closed by the SIC two years ago.

The permanent population of the community stands at about 30, which is a decrease from 70 just a few years ago.

Mr Scott said multi-agency action needs to take place “as quickly as is practicable” and called on the council’s chief executive Mark Boden to spearhead a taskforce group.

“The Skerries situation needs some very direct response,” he said.

“What I don’t think we should all do is sigh heavily and let things happen. A group to look at the different aspects of both council policy and both other agencies, properly led by the chief executive, seems to me to be an appropriate way to recognise the seriousness of the situation.”

Mr Scott envisages agencies like Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), as well as NHS Shetland, would be involved.

Gary Robinson said the council’s door is “always open” to island communities like Skerries.

However, he said it is “very hard” to pinpoint a direct solution to the decline in Skerries, with employment in the isles a key factor.

“First and foremost, any action should be instigated by the islanders themselves,” he said.

“The council would be happy to help and support them, but we need to hear from the islanders first about what is needed to put the islands back on a firm footing again.

“It needs to be led by the community, and be for community. Beyond that, the council and politicians can swing into support.”

Mr Robinson admitted that the “current climate” means the council is unlikely to offer additional financial support to Skerries.