Community / No debates this winter, Althing announces
ONCE a month during winter the Althing hosts lively debates offering a Shetlanders a chance to discuss a wide variety of topics.
But that is to come to an end unless new committee members can be found to keep the group going.
As a result, the group have announced there will be no debates this season.
Current committee member Vic Thomas said: “The Althing needs to be taken over by a completely new team if it’s to survive.
“We need a dedicated team of new blood to work on getting the programme up and running.
“The fundamental issue is that we need people who come with the ability to persuade people into speaking at the debates, which is a tall order – it’s not easy.
“We’ve realised it’s not good enough to get just two or three new people on the committee, we’ve now decided we not only need a complete new Althing committee, but they also have to be pro-active in bringing forward speakers for the debates.”
Thomas, who is treasurer of the Althing committee, explained it is easy for them to agree on topics but the bulk of the work comes from trying to find dedicated speakers.
He said: “We’ve struggled for the last four or five years, [committee member] Karen Fraser has been carrying it.
“She’s really been the one that’s found the speakers, and because Karen has been doing it for so many years, she has all the knowledge of past debates and who to call on.
“She has a huge amount of local knowledge, and comes in close contact with a lot of people in the literary and academic world.”
The Althing Social Group was founded on 16 September 1950, with the first debate being held in the old Tingwall Hall on 11 November that year. The topic was ‘Empty Pews! Is The Church Responsible?’.
Since then, debates have been held regularly, aside from a break from 1967 to 1973 when the hall was considered too run down to host them.
They moved to the Tingwall school, and hosted debates there before moving to the new Tingwall Hall in 2014. Most recently, debates have been held at Lerwick Town Hall on Saturday evenings once a month during winter.
Last season’s debates included topics around legalising drug use, discussing the merits of freedom, and whether the current school year is too short.
The current committee members include Thomas, chair Caroline Henderson and Fraser.
A record audience of over 250 people attended the 1955 debate on the motion “that a crofter’s tractor is more use to him than a wife” – with voters deciding that the tractor was more useful.
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