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A thick blanket of fog over Shetland has disrupted air transport in and out of the isles all week, with flights to and from oil installations particularly badly affected.

Yesterday the disruption at Scatsta Airport persisted into a fourth day and Bristow Helicopters base manager Colin Jones said: “There has not been so much disruption since the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland in 2010. There were limited flights on Monday but no flights at all, helicopter or fixed wing, on Tuesday.”

On Wednesday morning he said the forecast predicted clear­ance in the afternoon and flights did start operating after lunch. Yesterday followed a similar pattern, with no flying in the early morning but resuming later on.

Mr Jones said it had been a frustrating few days – the weather was running contrary to models from the Met Office, although it is set to improve this weekend.

He said: “This [fog] has been caused by the jet stream moving a lot further south than we’d expect at this time of year. High pressure will encompass Shetland at the end of the week so we should be getting back to normal conditions. We have not had a run of weather like this for a good few years.

“It’s very frustrating, we want to provide that service offshore and will begin operations as soon as it is safe.” There was now a backlog to work through, and he added: “There is fog in the East Shetland Basin as well so the guys know the prob­lems.”

He said there are normally 18 helicopter flights out 18 back per day, flown in three rotations of six, with each rotation fed by three fixed wing flights.

Flights in and out of Sumburgh Airport have been subject to delays or cancellations since Monday, when some planes were unable to land. On Tuesday afternoon flights managed to land and take off during gaps in the low cloud, and by Wednesday morning the schedule was oper­ating normally.

However yesterday there was more disruption –the early morning mail plane, due in at 8.30am, was cancelled, with other incoming flights up to an hour late. The 7.35am flight to Kirkwall was cancelled, the 7.40am flight to Edinburgh was delayed until 1.15pm and other flights had short delays.

Early morning flights to Sumburgh were delayed on Friday, but several were able to land either side of 11am.

Passengers affected by fog at Sumburgh included SIC political leader Gary Robinson, who was stuck in Orkney on Tuesday. He was joined in the airport by Lerwick resident Michael Mackay, who had had a frustrating time.

Returning from Aberdeen Royal Infirmary on Monday, his flight circled round Sumburgh but returned to Aberdeen. The passengers were accommodated at a hotel in the city, but not provided with food and had to get up at 5am to be bussed to Dundee. Then they had to wait for a flight, which took off at 11am – but after another failed landing attempt only got as far as Orkney.

Mr Mackay is now home, although his one-hour journey took more than 24 hours.

However two Shetland-bound passengers had an even worse experience. When they attempted to board the flight from Dundee which eventually arrived in Shetland, they were told it was full. They were then taken by taxi to Aberdeen and put on the boat that night, getting home on Wednesday morning.

Stuart Nickerson

Shetland may yet become host to the country’s most northerly whisky distillery, if plans by one industry insider come to fruition.

The idea, which is so far at a “very early stage of development”, has come from Stuart Nickerson, who runs The Malt Whisky Com­pany, based in Banffshire. He has identified Saxa Vord in Unst as a potential site for a “boutique distillery” and has made contact with the SIC to begin exploring the feasibility of the project.

Mr Nickerson has been involved in the whisky industry since the early 1980s, working in “various jobs and with various companies” since then. That has included time as distillery manager at Highland Park in Orkney, and, more recently, as managing director of Glenglas­saugh, on the Moray coast.

Glenglassaugh was an ambitious and ultimately very successful pro­ject. The distillery had been moth­balled for 22 years until 2008, but under Mr Nickerson’s management it was brought back to life and back into profit, before being sold earlier this year.

Mr Nickerson said he was well aware of the previous failed distil­lery plan in Shetland, but stressed that, other than having provided some consultancy services to Black­woods, he was “not connected at all” with the company.

He believes that project failed for a number of reasons – most importantly, he said, it was “over­sized for today’s marketplace …The growth for distilleries is in smaller-sized, boutique distil­leries”.

Shetland offers a tantalising pros­pect for the whisky industry. It has “unique selling points”, being the most northerly part of the UK; it has good infrastructure and avail­able buildings; and it is “probably the last part of Scotland that hasn’t been developed for distilleries”.

Unlike Blackwoods, however, Mr Nickerson seems more con­cerned with establishing the feas­ibil­ity of the project rather than trumpeting his plans and making promises he cannot keep.

He believes his idea is workable, but said “the first thing is to ensure that we do things correctly, if it’s going to go ahead, with Shetland Islands Council.

“The next stage would definitely be to come and speak to people locally about it.”

Sonny Priest, who runs the Valhalla Brewery at Saxa Vord, said he believes a whisky distillery would be “an excellent idea”, and he felt sure it could be a positive thing for Unst and for Shetland.

“It would work in well with what we’re doing here”, he added. 

The days of the Co-op cafe would appear to be numbered following the re-emergence of talks with fashion retailer Peacocks to open up an outlet in the Holmsgarth Road store.

The Shetland Times has learned plans are underway for the High Street name to be in place in the Lerwick supermarket by the end of the year, bringing an end to the long-running eatery housed in the Co-op building run by the Sumburgh Hotel.

As part of the proposals the clothes outlet would spill out of where the existing cafe area lies, and take up a portion of the floor-space occupied by the Co-op’s shelves. That will inevit­ably re­duce the store’s overall footprint for merchandise, despite the Co-op’s insistence that an “extensive range” of goods will continue to be offered.

News emerged over a year-and-a-half ago that the clothing giant hoped to open up in the Lerwick supermarket building. But word of the develop­ment quickly died down after Peacocks became one of the many high street retailers at the time to fall victim to the recession.

However more than 300 stores throughout the country were saved when Edinburgh Woollen Mill bought the retailer out of administration, safeguarding 6,000 UK jobs.

On Wednesday it emerged plans to see Peacocks set up in the isles were back on track. The Co-op said the retailer would prove to be a valuable addition to the store.

Its PR manager, Steve Broughton, said: “We are in discussions for clothes retailer Peacocks to open a unit within our food store in Holmsgarth Road, Lerwick. It is hoped to open by the end of the year, in the area currently occupied by an independently-run cafe, which would close. The Peacocks outlet would extend into part of the existing food store, which will continue to stock an extensive range. We are confident that Peacocks would be a great addition, and be popular with our customers.”

The cafe is run by the Sumburgh Hotel, and is operated by four members of hotel staff. It has proved popular over the years with regular visitors, including tourists and workers on their lunch-breaks eager to catch a quick and simple bite to eat.

Sumburgh Hotel manager Mark Donaldson said the idea of changing the cafe into a clothes outlet had been rumbling on for some time.

“The Co-op looked to do that a year ago until Peacocks had their problems. It’s always been on the back-burner to do something else.

“It’s not just the cafe that’s affected, it’s the whole of that side of the building that will be taken over.

“The cafe is not very big. It’s quite a large unit that’s going in there. It’s right up that side of the building where the drinks aisle is, so they are obviously doing a bit of a shuffle around.”

Mr Donaldson said the cafe staff would be redeployed to work in his other “business interests” in Lerwick, although he declined to say what they were.

Chairman of Lerwick Community Council, Jim Anderson, said the changes have been waiting in the wings for some time.

He said the loss of the cafe could benefit other planned eateries in the town, such as the new cafe-bar planned by Dennis Leask – which could prove popular with Tesco customers – and the proposed cafe at the top of Harry’s Department Store.

“They were going to change … but Peacocks went bust… so it all kind of fell through.

“If I remember correctly there was no concern. It would maybe work in well with Dennis Leask’s plan for a cafe, and indeed when Harry gets his plan for a cafe.”

Peacocks has yet to respond to The Shetland Times’ request for a comment. Edinburgh Woollen Mill declined to comment.

Doing Shetland proud: Andrea Strachan now has two golds and three silver medals in Bermuda. Photo: Andrew Inkster

Team Shetland’s serial medal-winning swimming pair Andrea Strachan and Felix Gifford were at it again on Thursday night – each claiming a silver to add to their bulging collections.

Andrea claimed silver in the women’s 100m individual medley. She finished the race in a time of 1:04.19, behind Gotland’s Ida Sandin. She will fly home from Bermuda this weekend carrying two gold and three silver medals after an outstanding week at the 2013 Natwest Island Games.

Meanwhile Felix took silver in the men’s 400m freestyle, ensuring he will bring five medals home with him too – two gold, two silver and a bronze. He narrowly missed out on the third gold medal he had been hoping for, finishing in a time of 3:57.15 – quarter of a second behind the Cayman Islands’ Geoffrey Butler.

His teammate Donnie Price swam very well too, finishing fourth in 4:05.94, only two-and-a-half seconds behind bronze medallist Cameron Donaldson of Jersey.

Amy Harper was again unlucky not to find herself in the medals. Fourth place in the 100m freestyle saw her 0.35 of a second behind Guernsey’s Courtney Butcher, while her 50m backstroke time of 30.52 seconds was again only a third of a second off a bronze, won by Bermuda’s Ashley Yearwood.

Felix Gifford produced a succession of excellent swims to win five medals. Photo: Andrew Inkster

Swimmers Andrea and Felix have now accounted for 10 of Team Shetland’s 15 medals at the games. That tally matches a much larger squad’s haul in the Isle of Wight two years ago.

On the athletics track, there was a very good run from Shetlander Haydn Thomason. He finished fifth in the 400m final with a time of 50.49 seconds. That left him 1.28 seconds shy of a place on the podium, but represents an excellent achievement nonetheless.

The best remaining chance of further success is likely to come in tonight’s women’s 800m.

Emma Leask celebrating her 400m silver with athletics team manager Karen Woods. Photo: Andrew Inkster

Athlete Emma Leask won Heat 2 comfortably yesterday in a time of 2:16.97. Four runners in Heat 1 clocked a faster time, but Emma is the event’s island games record holder having won in 2:11.72 two years ago.

Her final is due to start at 6pm Bermudan time – 10pm in the UK.

* See today’s Shetland Times for coverage and photos documenting our athletes’ fortunes earlier in the week.

Cinema and music venue Mareel.

Cinema and music venue Mareel is in the running to be named the best building in Scotland.

Shetland Arts is delighted to have received the news that Mareel is being considered for the Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award, and has been moved from the “long list” for RIBA’s top award, the Stirling Prize, to the “mid list”.

The £13.5 million venue, which is now nearing its first anniversary after a much-delayed opening, recently won both RIAS (Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland) and RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) awards for architectural excellence.

Shetland Arts director Gwilym Gibbons said he wanted to thank everyone who contributed to the building, including architect firms Gareth Hoskins and the Shetland-based PJP, contractors DITT, Shetland Islands Council, the European Regional Development Fund, Creative Scotland, HIE and the Gannochy Trust.

“I believe that Mareel is a very special building: a tribute to the design is the speed and the way in which people have made Mareel their new creative home,” Mr Gibbons said..

“Mareel has one of the best attended cinemas in the UK, a busy recording studio linked to the main auditorium with a sought after acoustic quality that has led artists to choose Shetland over other studios in the UK. The venue also houses the delivery of further and higher education courses and a broad range of live music performed on the Mareel stage regularly live streamed to the world.”

The SIC recently purchased a 99-year long lease of the building for £1.1 million, and leased it back to Shetland Arts. The arts agency remains in legal dispute with DITT over who is to blame for the project’s delays and cost overruns.  

Local CAB manager Sylvia Jamieson.

Economic inequality is growing in Shetland, with increasing numbers hit by social and financial difficulties – as housing ranks highly among many people’s concerns.

The industrial boom brought by Total’s gas plant, far from bringing ‘trickle down benefits’ to the whole community, is contributing to these problems, with the cost of private rental accommodation now rising out of the reach of local people.

That is the view of at least one councillor, and it is backed up by the experience of the Shetland branch of the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB), which this week received a major funding boost from the National Lottery.

Such is the extent and severity of this issue that the council may be forced to dip into its reserves and begin to build more houses, to ensure the islands are not faced with an exodus of young people.

CAB’s manager Sylvia Jamieson confirmed the bureau was experi­encing an increase in enquiries about a whole range of issues, from benefit problems to debt.

However, one of the most notable changes has been a rise in the number of queries about housing. There has been, she said “a lot of enquiries from both landlords and tenants around being evicted or evicting tenants, questions around deposits, that kind of thing.”

She said the past four to six weeks had seen a particular leap in numbers. “It may be a blip but the blip is not showing any signs of stopping,” she said. “We’re going to monitor it over the next few months and see what happens.”

The difficulties are caused, in part, by the steady pressure on the housing stock owned by the council and Hjaltland Housing Association, because of a limited supply of properties and a waiting list of hundreds. However, the problems are also due to steeply rising rents, both in Lerwick and beyond, which are being attributed to the demand from Total workers and executives, who, it seems, are willing to pay whatever is asked.

The high prices are not confined to the town. With a two-bedroom house in the North Mainland recently advertised for £2,000 per month, and others rumoured to be going for considerably more, locals are being priced out of the market.

Ms Jamieson confirmed that she “suspects” demand due to the gas plant development may be at the root of the problem.

“Landlords are aware that … they can get better rent elsewhere,” she said. And in some cases “bullying tactics are being used” to move local tenants on.

“We’ve got this weird situation where there’s this boom with Total, yet, if you’re somebody who’s trying to exist on benefits or on minimum wage and aren’t able to move out of that income bracket, things are much worse for you. It’s a growing inequality.”

Councillor Allison “Flea” Duncan has previously cautioned his colleagues in the town hall about this very problem. “I said at one of the last meetings that the private rents in Shetland were astronomical and were going through the roof,” he told The Shetland Times. “I saw that happening over a year ago”.

He went on: “We have an economic boost in Shetland compared with a substantial part of the rest of the United Kingdom, but I’ve said all along ‘Where’s the housing?’ What’s the point of having a boom if the whole of the infrastructure is not in place?”

SIC councillor Allison Duncan wants ‘limited amount’ of spending on new houses.

Mr Duncan believes the council may be forced to intervene to bring the situation under control. With a rapidly ageing population, he said, Shetland cannot afford for its young people to be priced out of the islands.

“The only way of getting out of this is hopefully we can start new house builds” he explained. “I wouldn’t have a problem with going into our reserves for a limited amount of money – I repeat, limited amount of money – and starting to build new houses.”

The kind of figure he has in mind, Mr Duncan said, was perhaps £3-4 million. However, he added: “One of the main obstacles in the way is wir £40.1million housing debt. If that was to be written off … then we would find the money to start house building.

“I’ve made it quite clear to [social services chairman] Cecil Smith that we need more housing.”

Were the SIC to go ahead with such a project, those houses would be “an asset to the council. Plus they would generate rental income immediately”.

The visit of the Scottish cabinet next week will provide an opportunity for local politicians to press ministers on the issue of housing, and the lingering housing debt.

Meanwhile, The Shetland Times’ petition calling on the Edinburgh and London governments to clear the SIC’s £40 million housing debt yesterday reached 2,200 signatures – around 10 per cent of the population.

The campaign will draw to a close shortly as pressure grows on both to find a way to resolve the matter. Council house tenants face the prospect of a 10 per cent rent rise if no action is taken.

www.dropshetlandsdebt.org

Emma Leask celebrating her 400m silver in Bermuda with athletics team manager Karen Woods earlier in the week. Photo: Andrew Inkster

Record-breaking runner Emma Leask won Shetland’s fifth gold medal of the 2013 NatWest Island Games on the final day’s competition in Bermuda.

Her Friday night victory in the women’s 800m, in a time of 2:11.37, ensured she broke the games record she had set two years ago in the Isle of Wight.

It was a close-run thing, with the hosts’ Tamika Williams finishing only 0.18 of a second behind, ahead of the Western Isles runner Eilidh Mackenzie who won bronze. 

It is her third successive island games victory in the 800m. Earlier this week she won a silver at the 400m distance.

It means Team Shetland finish ninth out of 24 in the overall medals table, chiefly thanks to the sterling achievements of swimmers Felix Gifford and Andrea Strachan.

There were eight silver medals and three bronze to add to the five golds, meaning a slimmed-down squad have collectively won one medal more than they did in 2011.

There were some other strong track performances too: the 4x400m relay saw Shetland’s men finish a very creditable fifth. The team – Gareth Robertson, Sean Smith, Haydn Thomason and Alan Williamson – were less than three seconds off the podium in a time of 3:30.75.

In an energy-sapping half marathon, which saw 11 competitors fail to go the distance, Karl Simpson, Peter Fenwick and Bonar Barclay came 14th, 15th and 22nd respectively. Karl and Peter both completed the course in just under an hour and a half, while Bonar finished in 1:39.41.

A spokeswoman for Shetland’s Amateur Athletics Club said: “Well done indeed to Karl, Pete and Bonar – in the heat and humidity to complete the half marathon is a great achievement. Just goes to show what determination you all have and what excellent examples you are to our young athletes.”

* For photos and a round-up of the last two days of the Bermuda games, see next week’s Shetland Times.

Patrick and Morgan Blanch pull their first pints at the Maryfield Hotel.

The Maryfield House Hotel in Bres­say is to be given a new lease of life when it changes hands at the end of July.

The new owners have lived in Shetland just a few months, but are filled with enthusiasm for the place and its potential.

Patrick and Morgan Blanch are from Canada, and together have around 28 years experience in hos­pitality and the food and drinks in­dustry. Patrick has previously owned and operated Irish pubs, hotels and nightclubs, and the chance to run a “boutique hotel” together seems to be a dream come true.

The couple came to the UK last year, with the long-term goal of finding a property to run as a bus­iness. They found themselves in Shetland almost by accident how­ever – arriving in the islands for a short holiday in March and never leaving. While visiting Bressay they saw the Maryfield and knew almost immediately they had found what they were looking for.

It was, first of all, the “aesthetic draw” of the building that hooked them, as well as “the fact that there is so much history within those bricks and mortar”; but quickly the idea of staying in Shetland – of living in a community and bringing up a family here – convinced them that this was the right place.

The couple have ambitious plans for the hotel, including upgrading it to a five star rating, and eventually extending the building to offer ten new bedrooms in addition to the six already in existence. However, guests and visitors are likely to see a few changes almost immediately, with refurbished bed­rooms, bicycles and kayaks for hire, and an improved off-sales service, with a good sel­ection of wine available. There will also be a new restaurant menu, planned by a Michelin star winning chef, which will include as much local produce as possible.

Although Patrick and Morgan have already been approached by both BP and Petrofac, who wish to book rooms for executives on a long-term basis, the pair intend to keep space available for “normal” visitors. They see the hotel as a “tremendous opportunity” for them, but they also recognise the “res­ponsibil­ity” they have “towards the community”.

Since arriving, they said, they have received a great deal of support and encouragement, not just from the current proprietors of the Maryfield, but also from the owners of the Sumburgh and Scal­loway hotels. They are extremely grateful for the help, and looking forward to the challenge ahead.

Inspecting the new fish jump at Hoswick are local builder David Smith, Neville Martin from Sandwick Community Council and John Bain of Shetland Anglers Association. Photo: Dave Donaldson

A South Mainland community has shown its green credentials in a move to help fish navigate a burn that they have hardly been able to use since the floods and landslides of 2003.

In what is thought to be a first for Shetland, a fish ladder has been built in the burn in Hoswick to enable young trout to jump upstream. They have struggled to do this since the devastation of 10 years ago.

Sandwick resident Neville Martin said that the bridge over the burn had been washed away then, and although SIC had done a good job of rebuilding the site with three road culverts, water only flowed over them in a “thin layer”, making it impassable to fish.

Now, thanks to the ladder, instead of water going through three culverts, at times of “low flow” all the water goes through one, creating a water depth of around six inches which fish can jump up.

The idea of the ladder came from Mr Martin and was developed in consultation with anglers, Sandwick Community Council and the SIC roads department, which did the drawings.

Mr Martin said: “Sand­wick could be a good model for other places, navigation of lots of burns is difficult at this time of year. Hopefully they [the trout] will use it.”

The ladder had been reasonably cheap to put in, he said, and had attracted a grant of £5,000 from the SIC. It forms part of wider environ­mental improvements in the area, where there has been a lot of planting.

Mr Martin said: “The whole burn is really coming together with a plantation. Hopefully it will be good for twitchers, and anglers will be along next.”

The trout ladder was created by Sandwick builder David Smith, and made a change from his usual work of house-building.

Mr Smith said: “It was different from what we’ve done before, but nothing overly complicated. It is a concrete structure with five little ponds and the fish jump from one to the other. They swim into the flow of water.”

The project had taken about a week to build, he said, and involved blocking off one of the three pipes and chanelling the water through the other two while under construction.

Anglers are delighted that the burn is set once again to support trout – and could potentially be more trout-friendly than in the years before 2003. John Bain of Shetland Anglers Association said the association stocks burns throughout Shetland, and he used to put “a few hundred” young fish in the Hoswick burn every year, even though, like the one at Channerwick, it was “cleaned out” by the landslides. Although he has not stocked the Hoswick burn for a couple of years he has recently seen a few young fish there.

Mr Bain said: “There were never many fish went up that burn but every little helps. Now we are hoping to create a few pools to sustain young fish while they grow up.”

He said they stay in pools until they are two years old, after which they migrate to the sea. They then return to the pools to spawn. Natural burns develop their own holding areas among the rocks, he said, but in this area these had been lost.

Mr Bain said: “I’m thrilled with this ladder, there’s a few more places in Shetland that could do with them as well. When it’s finished it will work well. Pools have to be there for it to work, to sustain life for the first two years and for fish to spawn there.”

Shetland Anglers Association distributes around 150,000 young trout annually, using brood stock from Walls which is grown on in the hatchery in Weisdale. The trout are around two inches long when they are put into burns.

This year the association, whose members fund the stocking themselves, has put 5,000 into each of the two Cunningsburgh burns, 5,000 into the burn at Channerwick and few hundred into the Sandwick burn.

On Wednesday 17th July, when I returned from work, I discovered a person had been on my property for some time, apparently surveying.

When I asked the individual who he was employed by he said he was doing an ecologial survey for the new road which Viking Energy is proposing to construct from Sandwater to Kergord.

Despite John Robertson’s (community liason officer – Viking Energy’s new PR person) assurances of openess it would appear that the breathtaking arrogance, as displayed in the past by Viking Energy, continues unchanged.

To allow a surveyor to enter someone’s land without first obtaining permission is, in my opinion, symptomatic of the entire toxic project.

From the very start this windfarm has been driven forward with no regard for the individuals or communities that will be the most affected.

Donnie Morrison
Setter,
Weisdale.

I voted for Gary Robinson in the last local elections because he survived, and said his piece, in a completely dysfunctional council.

I haven’t been keeping up with the news, and maybe it would be better if I hadn’t. But I’ve just found out with horror that apparently the Aith Junior High School (and others) is scheduled to be downgraded to a primary school.

This is an abomination. It means an 11-year-old child will have to travel at least 21 miles to get to the Anderson High School and back every day. Of course the majority of councillors in Lerwick and nearby won’t care. Thank goodness that my son has just finished school.

Then there’s Gary Robinson, my constituent councillor, who I’ve known since childhood; so any harsh words I say with regret. But it always seems to be the case that once somebody reaches a position of power, they “go to the dogs”.

I will never vote for Gary Robinson again if the Aith secondary closes. But maybe he won’t care, because he’ll be “parachuted” to a “safe seat” somewhere else.

I’m utterly sick of Shetland politics, and I haven’t even mentioned those diabolical windmills. I intend to “hide” in my house at Tresta with all the doors locked.

Roddy Nicolson
Da Kupp,
Tresta.

Spurs continued their impressive form in senior football’s G&S Flooring Premier League on Friday by recording their second victory in the competition over knockout specialists Whitedale.

The result saw the Milkbags retain their 100 per cent record and means they have now opened up a nine-point gap in the table.

G&S Flooring Premier League

Delting 1, Celtic 1
James Aitken had put the Hoops in front but Shaun Macgregor equalised for the Delts.

Scalloway 8, Thistle 2
Scalloway’s goal-fest this month continues. Laurence Pearson and Scott Henderson got a hat trick each while Robert Garrick and Jamie Allan got in on the act. The Thistle scorers were not submitted.

Whitedale 0, Spurs 4
This resuilt could have major consequences for the title race as Spurs extended their lead at the top. Scorers were Joe Leask (2), Shane Jamieson and Scott Morrison.

• For full reports and league table see The Shetland Times on Friday.

A lesser black-backed gull seen in Sumburgh this month was ringed as a chick in southern Europe.

Jim Irvine from Sumburgh Farm is highly regarded by the local birding fraternity and he spotted this colour-ringed lesser black-backed gull in a cut silage field at Grutness earlier this month. Roger Riddington took the photo below from Jim’s tractor cab, which clearly showed the ring code: F033. It turned out that the bird had been ringed as a chick at Olhao, near Faro, in southern Portugal, on 22 May 2011.

Lesser black-backed gulls breed in Shetland and spend the winter mainly off the coasts of Iberia and north-west Africa. There are a few recoveries of Shetland-ringed chicks in Portugal but this is the first record of a Portuguese-ringed chick in Shetland.

The football and hockey squads have both been selected for Saturday’s inter-county matches against Orkney, to be played at Gilbertson Park in Lerwick and the artificial pitch in Brae respectively.

The 17-man football squad has a very inexperienced look, with no fewer than eight players yet to appear in a county match. They include Delting goalkeeper Iain Devonald, Celtic defender Joel Bradley and Whitedale forward Richard Sinclair.

Spurs midfielder James Johnston could pick up his 15th cap against Orkney on Saturday. Photo: Kevin Jones

At the other end of the scale Spurs midfielder James Johnston, 32, is in line for his 15th cap while Delting stalwarts Merv Jamieson and Leighton Flaws, who are the same age, could pick up their 11th apiece.

The full squad is: Erik Peterson (Whitedale), Iain Devonald (Delting); Leighton Flaws (Delting), Josie Kay (Spurs), Piotr Drozdowski (Whitedale), Merv Jamieson (Delting), Richard Arthur (Whalsay), Joel Bradley (Celtic), Duncan Fraser (Whitedale); Robert Smith (Celtic), Calvin Leask (Thistle), James Johnston (Spurs); Scott Henderson (Scalloway), Richard Sinclair (Whitedale); Steven Umphray (Scalloway), James Aitken (Celtic), Roy Wood (Celtic).

Meanwhile the 16-strong hockey squad shows just three players in line for their debuts – Whalsay’s Victoria Duthie and Abbey Irvine and Megan Hibbert of Delting.

Highly-rated Delting goalkeeper Toni Sidgwick, with nine caps to her name, is named captain and her team mate Julie Kirkness, who has amassed 14 appearances, is vice-captain.

Delting have seven players in the squad, Whalsay have six (including junior inter-county captain Karis Irvine) and Burra have three.

Goalkeeper Toni Sidgwick will captain the Shetland hockey team in her 10th county appearance. Photo: Kevin Jones

The full squad comprises: Toni Sidgwick (Delting), Karis Irvine (Whalsay), Janetta Williamson (Delting), Jillian Copeland (Delting), Julie Kirkness (Delting), Vicky Anderson (Burra), Victoria Duthie (Whalsay), Nicola Balfour (Delting), Kristan Robertson (Burra), Donna Murray (Delting), Maree Simpson (Whalsay), Megan Hibbert (Delting), Dianne Shearer (Whalsay), Zoe Irvine (Whalsay), Abbey Irvine (Whalsay), Stacey Laurenson (Burra).

The hockey match begins at 2pm and the football match, which will be refereed by Robert Geddes, is scheduled for 6pm.

A third barge to house Shetland Gas Plant personnel will be coming to Lerwick Harbour in the autumn.
Oil firm Petrofac has confirmed it has commissioned another accommodation vessel, which is expected to arrive around the third week of September.

Petrofac is now in discussion with Lerwick Port Authority as to where exactly it will berth. It is believed that Mair’s Yard, where the new fishmarket will be sited, is under consideration.

The third barge will stay in Lerwick throughout the peak construction period of the £800 million gas plant, which could last until the spring.

The new barge, or “floatel”, will be much smaller than the other two already at the harbour, accommodating only 100 people. This is fewer than half the number on each of the other two barges, the Bibby Stockholm, which has been at Morrison Dock since March, and the Kalmar, which arrived last month and is at Albert Wharf.

LPA deputy chief executive Victor Sandison said: “Full information is awaited on its [the new barge's] requirements, including duration of the charter, so that a suitable berth can be allocated.”

A group based in the Northern Isles is seeking to raise funds for research into multiple sclerosis (MS) in Orkney and Shetland.

The project has grown out of the local branch of the MS Society, where, according to group member Tom Stove, there has been a long-running feeling that “research should be done in Shetland, where the prevalence of MS is the highest in the world, never mind in Britain”.

Group member Tom Stove believes research should be done in Shetland.

That feeling has now translated into action and the group has enlisted renowned Orcadian scientist Jim Wilson to lend his support to the idea.

Dr Wilson “has accumulated a lot of data over the years – blood samples – in Orkney and Shetland”, Mr Stove said. Indeed, he is ideally placed to take the idea forward, and has already found a candidate to carry out the required work as a PhD project.

The group has now applied for charitable status, and once that is secured they will begin “fund-raising on a serious basis”.

Mr Stove said: “The challenge is to raise £10,000 a year, between Orkney and Shetland, over three years, and that money will be matched by £30,000 from Edinburgh University, which we thought was too good a deal to pass. So we’ve embarked on doing that.”

Already the first donations have begun to come in. A cheque for £100 recently arrived from an Orcadian man who had heard Dr Wilson promoting the project. A note accompanying the cheque explained that the man had friends with MS and wanted to make a contribution.

The first fund-raising venture took place earlier this summer when Irene Bray and Lorraine Kemp completed the West Highland Way, walking the 96 miles from Milngavie to Fort William.

Despite a very wet first day, Lorraine said, the pair “had good weather for the remaining time. It was cool and sunny and really lovely walking weather. There were no midgies either because of the time of year … which was really good. The pathways were quite good but some of the way was quite challenging, quite rocky and stony, and very up and down.”

Lorraine has a brother with MS and is keen to raise money for the new research group. Anyone who would like to donate money for the walk can contact her on (01950) 431436.

The Orkney and Shetland MS Research Project will begin fund-raising properly later this year.

Responding to Tavish Scott’s thoughts regarding fuel prices and the Office of Fair Trading, I would tend to agree with his observations.

Moreover, I would also suggest that they are simply being outmanoeuvred and are investigating an industry that they do not appear to understand fully.

Furthermore, this industry has no regulator and relies solely on markets working effectively, in order for consumers to receive fair prices.

The UK fuel distribution field map has change dramatically in recent years with many acquisitions forming companies with massive turnovers. They could undoubtedly intimidate others left in the same market place – this is not necessary bad for the consumer or the business for that matter.

However, things start to go wrong when certain “elements” within a company almost wish and/or solicit favour from their larger competitor, in order to remain in a market or even grow the business. The initial contact between them may actually be by chance, e.g. International Petroleum Week.

The “unscrupulous” relish these occasions to meet similarly-minded individuals as it gives both an opportunity to gain necessary insights into any weaknesses or advantages the other may have. Furthermore, the “unscrupulous” will almost have no interest in the event and only wish to receive some sort of recognition from whom they perceive is the most dominant supplier.

During the contact one or the other will be waiting for that opportune moment that triggers a relationship that they think is “real business”, then they believe that they are smarter than anyone else?

Few words of consequence may actually be exchanged in the beginning but in future both will have parts to play as they become positively intertwined with shared information and understandings, i.e. a gentleman’s agreement.

If any activities like the scenario described have ever taken place, or similar, then the OFT would have grounds to investigate any companies concerned, as this would be illegal, i.e. a “Cartel” prohibited by the Competition Act.

Laurence Farmer
Strand,
Gott.

Two common dolphins were captured on video this weekend, bow-riding and breaching around a small boat off the east side of Yell.

Daniel Gear and his father David were fishing between Aywick and the White Hill on Saturday afternoon when the dolphins approached. The animals came alongside the boat, and remained with them as they moved around the area.

According to Daniel: “We motored around for 10 – 15 minutes with the dolphins playing around the boat, jumping out of the water, and swimming on their sides at the side of the boat to get a look at us. It was absolutely incredible”.

Despite the name, common dolphins are in fact rarely seen around Shetland, being more of a warm water species.

Shetland Islands Council set out its priorities for the next four years in its new corporate plan, published this week.

The corporate plan is described by the council as a “road map” which identifies the opportunities and challenges faced in the period. It shows how the council plans to deliver sustainable services for the future while getting to grips with its own budgetary pressures. This is set against a background of massive changes in national and global economies.

Following the last election, the current council’s priority from an early stage was to get to grips with local authority spending. Members moved quickly to address concerns expressed by the Accounts Commission, and set a medium-term financial plan to take the SIC through to 2017.

By that time, the aim is to have stabilised the authority’s finances, as well as developed services to make them more efficient and effective. The corporate plan sets out the council’s targets and commitments across all its services.

SIC political leader Gary Robinson said: “We’ve learned some tough lessons over the past couple of years, and are working hard at balancing the books and living within our means.

“At the same time we believe passionately in the value and importance of the services we provide to the people of Shetland, and our priority in the coming years is to continue to provide that high quality in the best and most cost-effective manner possible.”

Convener Malcolm Bell added: “The next four years will be critical for Shetland, and this plan demonstrates our commitment to work with our community in taking difficult but sensible decisions based on evidence.

“It is vital we strive to provide the very best services possible within available resources, and we will only be able to do this by working together in Shetland’s interest.”