Choose with care

Florence Grains has fairly hit the nail on the head saying “We are in the midst of a consultation over the change of the charitable trust, and should not be making a decision for somebody else to carry out” (Charitable trust inquorate again”, Monday 16th April).

By rights this same logic should prevent the newly elected councillors from providing further funding to Viking Energy. The decision should really only be taken by the future trustees of a reformed Shetland Charitable Trust, but what are the council candidates saying about the nature of that reform?

Some wannabe councillors are busily preparing for a fresh assault on charitable funds. It will be easy to identify these future councillors. They won’t want to answer whether further funding for Viking Energy should await the reform of Shetland Charitable Trust. They won’t want to talk about precisely how Shetland Charitable Trust should be independent of the council.

Let independence for Shetland Charitable Trust mean precisely that. Like anyone councillors can always have a say on the doings of Shetland Charitable Trust but there is no need for councillors set the agenda or have the last word. It is not desirable for councillor-trustees to be able to cast the deciding vote. There is no need for reserved places or two types of trustees. If trustees need extra professional advice they can ask for it. Let all trustees be directly elected plain and simple.

We know Shetland’s charitable funds are prone to abuse by those who would use them to create a job for life. Shetland’s charitable funds need to be properly protected from all future raiding parties.

Had Viking Energy been worth doing, it would have been worth doing properly. Proper protection for Shetland Charitable Trusts funds can only be achieved by the beneficiaries at the ballot box.

Recent history shows folk can have little faith in any consultation over the future of Shetland Charitable Trust. I very much hope Shetland’s voters will choose their future councillors with care.

Peter Hamilton
Guangdong,
China

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