Council / Councillors reject four savings proposals
FOUR savings proposals for the coming years have already been kicked out by councillors, including reducing winter road gritting and stopping grasscutting in burial grounds.
The other savings proposals rejected by councillors include reducing the opening hours at the dump and cutting back on surface dressing of roads.
A number of savings proposals were still included in documents for Shetland’s Islands Council’s approved budget for 2026/27.
The proposals are only options at this stage which will be further investigated, with some likely to be ruled out in due course.
If all were imposed, it is estimated they would reduce costs by more than £14 million over the next three years.
But at Wednesday’s full council meeting Shetland Central member Moraig Lyall sought to strike an initial three off the list.
Lyall, who chair’s the SIC’s environment and transport committee, said stopping grasscutting in burial grounds was tried before but was “so unpopular it was reversed very quickly”.
The list of proposals highlighted that ending grasscutting in graveyards would be “extremely unpopular” with the community.
Lyall also highlighted how the winter gritting service had already been reviewed recently and there “won’t be much potential for change” there.
Regarding a potential idea to close the Gremista dump on Sundays, the councillor said the centre is very busy that day and that the estimated saving of £10,000 a year was small.
Meanwhile development committee chair Dennis Leask sought the removal of a proposal to reduce surface dressing on roads, highlighting the importance of the work.
This proposal had suggested a ten per cent reduction in coverage.
One of the largest savings proposed in the document comes with the idea of rationalising the SIC’s estate.
There are also ideas like no longer offering relocation and interview expenses, reviewing Shetland Shellfish Management Organisation (SSMO) funding and scaling back the Costal Communities Fund.
Elsewhere in the proposals – which were given ‘traffic light’ rankings of acceptability – there are ideas to review the contracts for the Promote Shetland service and the Shetland Museum and Archives, move to a three-weekly waste collection cycle and to introduce public toilet charging.
Another idea is lobbying government for ‘fair revenue funding’ for inter-island flights.
However the document adds: “Lobbying may not succeed, and the process requires staff time and political effort. Failure could raise community expectations, and any new external funding may come with conditions that limit local flexibility.”
The SIC’s budget for 2026/27, which is worth nearly £190 million, includes a plan to undertake a total unsustainable draw from reserves of £26.1 million.
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