Contest in the west as three candidates vie for council seat

THERE will be a contest in the upcoming Shetland West council by-election after three candidates put their name forward.

Already publicly confirmed was independent candidate Mark Robinson, who narrowly missed out in May’s main election.

But party politics will be back, with Debra Nicolson again running for the Scottish Greens and Zara Pennington representing the SNP.

The by-election was sparked by the resignation of John Leask, who resigned due to work commitments just months after being elected in May.

The by-election will take place on 17 November, with the count following the next day.

In May’s election seven candidates were in the running for the west ward’s two seats. Liz Peterson was a comfortable winner with 298 first preference votes, with Leask receiving 135.

Robinson, who is the brother of Lerwick North and Bressay councillor Gary Robinson, secured 128 first preference votes.

This meant the voting system took into account other preference votes, with Leask winning the second spot at a late stage.

Nicolson received 69 first preference votes, with Pennington gaining 59.