News / Islanders to vote on trust reform
THE SHETLAND public is to be asked in a referendum on the best way forward for the Shetland Charitable Trust.
In a surprise 11th hour move, trustees didn’t even discuss governance reform proposals drawn up by a working group, but voted by a majority of 11 to nine in favour of a referendum proposal put forward by council convener Sandy Cluness.
The trust’s leadership has expressed its frustration with what they see as another attempt to delay the reform of the trust that holds around £200 million of Shetland’s oil funds.
Trust chairman Bill Manson reiterated his view that the trust had to abide by the latest charity legislation. It was therefore high time to change its constitution and remove the majority of SIC councillors from its board.
It had taken the governance review group two and half years to come up with proposals that were due to be discussed on Wednesday afternoon.
These proposals had already proved controversial in the public eye, as they favoured a future trust that would be made up of seven elected SIC councillors plus eight selected trustees.
On Wednesday, trustee Cluness, an outspoken opponent to any change, said the funds held in the charitable trust were owned by the people of Shetland and it was important to give them the “chance to speak”.
“The working group’s proposals were a compromise nobody was really keen on, certainly not by judging the e-mails and letters I received.
“This is not an ordinary trust. This is a trust that is entirely owned by the community. It is a big trust with a lot of money. It does a lot of good work, and I am convinced that the community will take an interest in deciding whether they are in favour of the current proposals or want to have something completely new,” he said.
There are three roughly equally large camps within the current board of 23 trustees, comprising of those who are in favour of the status quo, those who are prepared to accept the proposals drawn up by the review group and, finally, those who say these proposals don’t go far enough and favour an independent trust with direct elections.
All three options will be put to the electorate during a referendum likely to be held next year.
Trust chairman Bill Manson admitted that Wednesday’s vote had taken him by surprise.
He added that trustee Cluness had managed to gain support from two opposing camps to defeat the compromise solution that had originally been presented to the trust meeting.
“I feel frustrated and annoyed, because I believe that the majority of the people here wished us to get back into the statute.
“I am annoyed by it as a delaying tactic, as that is what I believe it to be, and we will also have to check whether it is legitimate for this body to maintain a position that is outwith the statute.”
Those voting for the referendum were: Sandy Cluness, Alastair Cooper, Addie Doull, Allison Duncan, Florence Grains, Robert Henderson, Andrew Hughson, Rick Nickerson, Gary Robinson, Cecil Smith and Gussie Angus.
Voting against the motion for a referendum were: “Betty Fullerton, Jim Henry, Bill Manson, Caroline Miller, Valerie Nicolson, Frank Robertson, Sir John Scott, Josie Simpson and Jim Budge.
Trustee Laura Baisley abstained. Trustees Jonathan Wills and Iris Hawkins were not present at Wednesday’s meeting.
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