Letters / London financiers fail Shetland
The understandable uproar over the proposed closure of Shetland’s onlytourist office by an off-island body is nothing to the uproar that should be about ‘offshore’/off-Shetland ownership of our principle high street/retail area Commercial Street, Esplanade, Commercial and North Road.
(This excludes the horror of Tesco, where its profits go to London to pay shareholders. At least the Co-op has a very strong ethical policy and a membership organisation.)
Property speculators, the world over, are the modern day lairds – thieves of local capital – that often result in empty shop premises which really drag towns down the length and breadth of the UK, if not globally.
I know we have our own property speculators ‘in house’, in our midst, not least amongst them the SIC, who ironically have sold public assets at much less than market value – former AHS Science Block!
Properties on Commercial Street, or anywhere else for that matter – St Clement’s Hall, Lochside Stores etc. – are sitting empty and are indeed eyesores on the local community.
In relation to tourism, the other dimension of this are holiday homes, owned by absent owners, who pop up for a few weeks each year, but the rest of the year sucks earned retail income – rent – out of the local economy.
Yet another reason for the need for a greatly enhanced and empowered system of self-government, which would ensure such drains on the local economy are prevented, and a better circular economy enhanced.
Do contact us – details below – if Shetland’s overall future is of interest to you.
James Paton
Administrator SAAT – Shetland Autonomy Action Team
jimmytex1@gmail.com
Mobile: 07783 033 139
