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.

Orkney landmark to close over safety concerns

Maeshowe
Maeshowe

A neolithic tourist attraction on Orkney is set to close later this month due to health and safety concerns.

Maeshowe will close to the public on September 26.

Orkney MSP Liam McArthur has now written to site managers Historic Environment Scotland (HES) calling for a solution which will allow the chambered cairn to reopen as soon as possible.

The site, which sits between Stromness and Finstown is a popular tourist attraction.

HES had recently been working with Orkney Islands Council to develop access to the visitor centre, although a plan has not yet been committed to.

Mr McArthur said that he was concerned that the lack of warning that Maeshowe would have to close was an example of a lack of partnership working between HES and the Scottish Government.

The Liberal Democrat MSP said: “HES previously claimed that Maeshowe would not shut.

“Now it insists that it has no option, based on health and safety concerns. Yet Maeshowe and Tormiston Mill are to remain open until the end of the month.

“This whole matter has been very poorly handled.

“Moving forward, however, it is imperative that a resolution is found as quickly as possible, to head off potential damage to Orkney’s vital tourism sector.

“I know that Orkney Islands Council are in dialogue with HES and I hope those discussions prove constructive.

“I have also requested a meeting with HES and sought assurances from the minister that she will intervene to help ensure that this does not drag on.”

He added: “Maeshowe is too important to Orkney’s heritage and tourism sectors.

“Whatever safeguards are felt necessary and proportionate, we need to see it open and accessible to the public.”

A spokesperson for Historic Environment Scotland, which manages the site, said: “We wrote to Liam McArthur MSP last week to inform him of recent developments, and can confirm we have received a response.

“We appreciate constructive feedback from residents, local partners and the community in Orkney, and we will be responding to Mr McArthur in due course.

“We are continuing to explore options to manage the risks associated with the site as a matter of priority.”