Taken to the cleaners (Jimmy Stout)

I have always tried to keep on the side of restraint on how I express my views on the council. Unfortunately, following the total loss of nearly £5 million from our reserves to the harbour trust, I have to speak out. Surely they should have known that no bridge to Bressay would be built at such short notice and could they not see how they were being taken to the cleaners?

Now cuts are demanded, along with the naïve notion that we, the public, now understand why cuts are necessary. Sure we do, and I don’t think that a lot of the public of Shetland are happy about some of the reasons why that is the case.

Most of the elderly are native Shetlanders who have worked hard for less reward than many are receiving now, while those at school are our future. We that live on the periphery wonder how long our way of life will continue. Those of our parents’ generation knew about good house-keeping before we entered the present throw-away society. Better house-keeping could have saved £4.8 million and a lot more forby.

Jimmy Stout
Fair Isle.