Also in the news / Ukraine solidarity, Beatrice on Bluesky, net zero consultation and more …
JUST over a handful of people turned out for solidarity event at Lerwick Market Cross on Saturday to mark the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Lerwick demonstration was one of 101 events held in 62 towns and cities throughout Britain to mark the anniversary.
Organiser Barbara Anderson said although the gathering was “quite small” she was proud that Lerwick was hosting one of those events.
SHETLAND MSP Beatrice Wishart has confirmed she has left the Elon Musk owned social networking site X (formerly Twitter) and has joined Bluesky.
Bluesky is a similar networking site which has gained a lot of followers concerned with misinformation and extremism on X.
She said: “Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter and repackaging of it as X led me to leave the platform some time ago.
“Like many others who have left I did not want to even tangentially support Musk and I feel there is little to be gained from posting on the platform.
“I joined Bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/beatricewishartmsp.bsky.social) at around the same time as leaving X and remain on Facebook with a presence on Instagram where many Shetland residents and liberals continue to engage.”
Shetland News is also on Bluesky. We can be found at: https://bsky.app/profile/shetnews.co.uk
THE Scottish Government has published its draft Just Transition Plan for transport in Scotland and is now asking for views from people, businesses and communities.
Transport secretary Fiona Hyslop said: “Tackling the climate emergency is a key priority for this government and transport remains Scotland’s largest source of emissions.
“What I know people and communities are asking for is more affordable, available and accessible public transport services across Scotland. It’s also important to recognise the inequalities that affect people’s use of transport – for example, the fact that many of our rural communities are more reliant on car use.
“We’re working hard to address these issues – and our latest consultation is another important opportunity for people, communities and businesses to have their say and to shape our future policy.”
The consultation closes on 19 May and can be accessed here.
CONSERVATIVE Highlands and Islands MSP Jamie Halcro Johnston has slammed proposals by Labour to reduce the number of health boards to three as “completely unacceptable”.
The plans had earlier been criticised by other political parties as well as the chair of NHS Shetland.
Proposal to merge NHS boards to achieve very little, according to local health board chair
Halcro Johnston, who is the convener of the Scottish Parliament’s cross party group on islands, said: “Much like the current SNP government, Labour has demonstrated a complete lack of understanding of our rural and island communities.
“Their plans to cut our health boards and centralise decision-making could mean choices about local health delivery in the Northern Isles, on Skye or in other parts of the Highlands would be made by NHS managers hundreds of miles away down in Dundee.
“This would be completely unacceptable to people across my region who already feel health services are being taken away from their local communities, with rural and island services sacrificed in favour of those in the cities.
“I know the pressures on our NHS and the hard-working staff who, day in day out, keep things running and patients looked after. But those pressures won’t be improved by moving responsibility for our health services even further away from those who rely on them.
“Our local NHS services are already stretched thin, but Labour want to stretch it even further. They simply don’t understand our rural and island communities.”
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