Council / Disagreement over proposal to give Lerwick Community Council extra funding
THERE were accusations of one elected member pitting “town against country” in the chamber this morning (Tuesday) during a discussion on the future of community council funding.
Lerwick South member John Fraser proposed that Lerwick Community Council should receive an extra one per cent in funding to be taken from other community council budgets.
He said this would cater for the number of Shetland-wide funding applications Lerwick Community Council receives – and often commits money to.
However his proposal was soundly beaten in a vote 11 to two – with one councillor calling his idea “petty” and another saying “words fail me – unbelievable”.
No final decisions were being made at the full council on meeting on Tuesday.
Instead, they were deciding what should go out for consultation regarding future community council funding.
It comes as Shetland Islands Council reviews the local community council scheme, with two phases of consultation already undertaken.
The third and final phase will see people able to have their say on a proposed new funding mechanism.
This takes into account town, rural and island allocations, access to key services and population.
The proposing funding settlement reaches more than £229,000 in total – with Lerwick Community Council in line to receive the most at £21,427 due to its population size.
However Fraser suggested Lerwick should get an extra one per cent in a “capital town levy” – which he said could amount to around an extra £1,800 a year – because of the number funding applications from Shetland-wide organisations and projects it receives.
He said these applications come in because of the number of Lerwick people who stand to benefit from the projects, adding that from his own research it is not common for other community councils to receive similar funding bids.
Fraser said this would create a “negligible difference” to other community councils but would give benefit to the wider Shetland community.
However Shetland Central member Ian Scott said from his own experience “every community council will get these requests” from Shetland-wide organisations.
His ward colleague Moraig Lyall also said it is “quite unhelpful to start pitting town against country”.
She said all community councils decide on how to use their money the best, and sometimes it is of benefit to the wider Shetland.
Lyall said there is “very little basis” to suggest one community council is potentially doing more to serve wider Shetland than others.
Her views were echoed by Shetland West’s Mark Robinson and Shetland Central member Davie Sandison, with the latter suggesting there was “no evidence” Lerwick was being disadvantaged by the proposed funding mechanism.
A disappointed Sandison continued by saying he felt Fraser’s suggestion was a “little bit petty”.
Lerwick North and Bressay councillor Stephen Leask said he had no interest in “town versus country” but said there is a lot of pressure on the Lerwick community council to put “higher or disproportionate funding” to specific projects outside of Lerwick.
He added that he felt strongly that Lerwick Community Council has to be “Lerwick centric” about how it uses its funding – but Leask was happy to approve the report.
Lerwick South member Dennis Leask said the subject of Shetland-wide funding applications crops up at meetings of the town community council but said its members have the “wit” to ascertain whether bids are appropriate or not.
He also suggested for the extra £1,800 and making a “special case for Lerwick” councillors might “lose an awful lot more as we’d even gain”.
Leask also said there did not appear to be any feedback from the prior consultations that Lerwick Community Council was looking for more money.
Fraser said it was “very disappointing” to be called petty or that he was pitting town against country.
He said that was not his intention – and in fact it was the exact opposite, with the hope of facilitating the number of wider funding applications that come to Lerwick and “fostering even better relationships” between the town and the rest of Shetland.
Stephen Leask said he would not support’s Fraser’s proposal because the one per cent figure was a “bit blunt”, although he supported the idea instead of SIC officers reviewing funding gaps.
Shetland South member Allison Duncan said he “strongly disapproved” of Fraser’s suggestion – with Ryan Thomson needing to seek clarification on the proposal because he was lost for words.
Fraser quipped that he “might make the bill” at Lerwick’s Up Helly Aa and said he understood his “country cousins” not supporting his idea.
Reiterating that he was keen to facilitate Lerwick distributing funding to Shetland-wide projects, he added: “I’m a toonie and I’m going to stand up for my community”.
He received the backing of Lerwick South councillor Neil Pearson but lost out in the resulting vote.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
