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.

Highland MSP slams ‘vanity scheme’ redevelopment amid funding shortfall for Highland schools

MSP John Finnie.
MSP John Finnie.

A Highland MSP has slammed the proposed redevelopment of Inverness’ Longman roundabout amid a funding shortfall for the upgrade of 11 Highland schools.

Green MSP John Finnie made his voice heard yesterday as details plans on the proposed new layout of the city’s roundabout went on display to the public after transport chiefs determined their chosen option to address the traffic woes of the stricken route.

Mr Finnie described Transport Scotland’s plans as a “vanity scheme” as he argued the projected £85-95 million cost would be better spent on Highland schools.

Mr Finnie said: “Both the Scottish Government and Highland Council have declared a “climate emergency”.

“Only this week we hear of the £25 million shortfall in bringing eleven Highland schools up to scratch. They should follow the example of the Welsh Government who have cancelled constructing a motorway, and put a halt to vanity schemes such as this.

“It is shocking that Highland Council and the Scottish Government prioritise short delays to motorists, for two brief periods each weekday, ahead of much-needed school upgrades.

“Of course we’ll be told ‘it’s not as simple as that’ or ‘it’s different budgets’ – that’s simply nonsense.

“It’s time for local authorities and governments to put some real action into this ‘emergency’ they purport to want to address.”

Mr Finnie’s remarks came after it was reported that Highland Council expects a reduction to a £75 million sum it had expected to repair schools.

Originally it had been anticipated that £50m of the total would come from the Scottish Government with £25m coming from the council. But a council report has warned that the government will now only match council funding, leaving a £25m shortfall.

Mr Finnie’s outburst came as transport chiefs preferred option for the redesign of the Longman runabout went on display to the public yesterday at the Inverness Caledonian Thistle Stadium.

It is anticipated that work on the project will get underway by 2022 should all statutory measures be met and if a public inquiry is avoided.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government has a duty to ensure that Scotland is equipped with the appropriate infrastructure to meet the needs of all our population.

“All major projects within the Scottish Government’s transport portfolio are subject to significant assessment work to ensure they deliver sustainable economic growth, improve safety and keep impacts on the environment to the absolute minimum, and the A9/A82 Longman Junction Improvement is no exception to that.”

What do you think?

“I like the idea of raising the level of the road and having the slip roads. Out of the options presented it is probably the best. As long as they keep disruption to a minimum during construction then it will be welcomed.”

George Glaister, 62, retired, Evanton.

“I am quite happy with the option presented. It’s just a pity really that it will take so long for them to start.”

Sheila Wilson, retired, North Kessock

“It is an improvement. As a cyclist, I am impressed with the different routes and it is an improvement on what we have already got. It is a lot of money but I can see the benefits.”

Keith Inglis, 43, civil engineer, Lochardil

“I like the design. There are plenty of routes for people to access, including cyclists, and it makes it all a bit safer and more accessible.”

Fiona Johnston, 50, Cycling UK development officer, Marybank