Looking back on the week

THIS past week saw things edge back to normality somewhat after the dust settled on a historic Scottish Parliament election last Friday.

Shetland’s new MSP Hannah Mary Goodlad was still in the headlines however as members of parliament were sworn in on Thursday.

She was also the first MSP to speak in Shaetlan while giving the oath.

Elsewhere in the news there was plenty of attention on the north boats on Friday morning when NorthLink showed off their new lie-flat pods.

Hannah Mary Goodlad is sworn in as Shetland’s new MSP.

Hannah Mary Goodlad is sworn in as Shetland’s new MSP.

Staying with NorthLink, we reported on how documents showed that reserving cabins for islanders could cost the Scottish Government £500,000 in lost revenue a year.

Also on the transport front, Shetland Islands Council expects to have invested nearly £2 million on an inter-island transport study by the time an outline business case comes in front of elected members in June.

We also ran a feature on the youth-led OPEN charity, which amongst other things runs a weekly youth cafe and undertakes peer education and research, while there was praise for Shetland’s roads after figures showed only one pothole compensation claim was made against the council in the last five years.

One of the most enduring photos of the week, meanwhile, came from a visit to the UHI’s Scalloway campus on Wednesday night as we watched a screening of Claire White and Jonathan Bulter’s new Shetland Bus documentary film.

It is fair to say the well-received film is worth a watch when it goes public next week.

With council meetings set to start up again later in the coming days and weeks, elected members on Shetland’s community safety and resilience board heard updates on Thursday from the isles’ emergency services.

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One key theme from the meeting was a discussion on antisocial behaviour in Lerwick, with police chief Chris Sewell highlighting a multi-agency approach.

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More stories from the week:

• Beggs shoe shop to close this weekend

• ‘No link’ between norovirus cruise ship and Shetland, NHS assures public

• Starmer alternatives ‘uninspiring’ as MP urges Labour to ‘get a grip’

• Council launches review into support for learning across isles

• Progress on new Cullivoe road project