SIC wants HIE board to stay

SHETLAND Islands Council has added its voice to those urging the Scottish Government to reconsider its plans to abolish the board overseeing the work of Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).

Council leader Gary Robinson has written to economy minister Keith Brown expressing the local authority’s “deep concern” about the plans, which have been strongly criticised by Lib Dem MSP Tavish Scott and other opposition politicians in the Highlands and Islands including Labour’s Rhoda Grant.

The government wants to do away with the HIE board and replace it with a single board overseeing the work of HIE and Scottish Enterprise. But the SIC wants to ensure control is retained within the Highlands and Islands “where it firmly belongs”.

Robinson’s letter states that HIE’s board, and its predecessor, have “led the economic transformation of the Highlands and Islands over a period of 50 years”.

“Splitting HIE’s governance arrangements from the service delivery mechanisms and then confusing the picture even more by making the service delivery mechanism report to a national board would have a serious impact on the focus of HIE’s future efforts and would ultimately dilute the impact of the service,” he writes.

“There does not appear to be any good reason for the change from a Shetland perspective, where we have fostered a very strong relationship with the HIE board over many years and we are generally very happy with the service provided.”

Brown faced questions on the subject during a meeting of the parliament’s education committee on Wednesday.

A statement from HIE two weeks ago, attributed to chairman Lorne Crerar, said the changes would include the “formation of a new overarching strategic board to oversee the activities of all the enterprise and skills bodies, which of course includes HIE”.

It added that HIE was in close contact with the government to ensure the organisation is “not in any way diminished and hopefully enhanced, and that the important features of our governance are replicated and not diluted in any new arrangements for the future”.