Wills seeks chair of charitable trust

LERWICK councillor Jonathan Wills has declared his wish to be chairman of Shetland Charitable Trust, despite having resigned from the charity last year in protest at proposed reforms.

Dr Wills, who was re-elected to represent Lerwick South 10 days ago, said that he has accepted an invitation to return to the trust and is now seeking election to its head.

Laying out his stall, the 64 year old boatman and tour guide reaffirmed his call for all trustees to be subject to democratic election.

He also called for the trust to invest more millions into the Viking Energy wind farm project subject to some conditions being met.

In December Dr Wills resigned from the trust along with former council convener Sandy Cluness when it voted to select, rather than elect a majority of eight independent trustees.

He said that the recent council elections suggest there is majority public support for the principle of retaining democratic control of the trust.

In a letter to all trustees, he laid out in detail his proposals for reform along with his request for support for his candidature.

He said the trust’s priority had to be reform, followed by rapid movement on the Viking Energy wind farm project that has stirred up huge controversy within the isles.

Dr Wills said he was in favour of the trust making a further £6.3 million investment in the wind farm project to take it to the construction stage, subject to three conditions.

He wants to see a more detailed breakdown of the proposed development budget, which might involve going into private session to protect commercial confidentiality.

He is also seeking assurances that any remaining concerns about proximity to houses can be resolved by re-siting or deleting some turbines or agreeing compensation/purchase agreements with householders, or by some other means.

He wrote: “I am sure we all want the Viking project to be a good neighbour, as far as technically possible.”

He added: “The controversy over the windfarm has tended to obscure the exciting opportunities it can bring to the trust and to the community whose interest we serve: if the returns from the investment are as large as predicted (and we will, of course, need expert evidence and assurance on that point, before proceeding to the next stage) then the trust’s annual income could at least double.

“In the long term, that could allow us to sustain and improve the Shetland system for care of the elderly; to spend more on the environment, sport and the arts, and to consider new ventures, such as educational grants (for example, music tuition, craftwork instruction, bursaries for apprentices and university students).

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