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The Solidarity party has called for decisive action over the future of the mothballed Nigg yard facility on the eve of Highland Council’s latest Planning, Environment and Development Committee (meets Wednesday 15th August). Solidarity has called on Highland council and the new Scottish Executive to come together to carry out a compulsory purchase of the so called ‘ransom strip’ owned by the Wakelyn Trust which has held up the sale of the yard, and to throw their weight unequivocally behind Cromarty Firth Port Authority’s bid to take over the yard as a multi-use facility.
Solidarity co-convenor Tommy Sheridan said “On the day that Alex Salmond launches a welcome national conversation on our constitutional future it is nothing less than a national disgrace that two years after CFPA registered a plan to take over this yard and create a thousand new and much needed skilled jobs in the Highlands, it still lies largely unused – all because the pecuniary interest of a private landowner and KBR are allowed to take precedence over jobs and the strategic national interest.” Solidarity revealed that a Freedom of Information request by its North Highlands branch to Highland Council revealed a lamentable lack of urgency on the issue, and showed that no correspondence or meetings with any Ministers had taken place on the issue since May. Solidarity also revealed that correspondence between its North Highlands branch and CFPA chairman, Jimmy Gray, showed CFPA still keen to take over the yard, despite the yards current owners KBR, a subsidiary of American multi-national giant Halliburton, switching its preferred bidder status to English based demolition company DSM in May of this year. Highlands Solidarity spokesperson Steve Arnott said “We are suspicious of this sudden switch in preferred bidder status and do not believe the future of a thousand skilled jobs and this key facility should be left to the vagaries of market forces. CFPA are a public sector, no shareholder, organisation who would be able to plough all profits from the yard back into new investment. Their commitment to develop Nigg as a multi-use facility, including the building of renewable turbines, could be of great assistance in the national strategic aim of reducing carbon emissions. Solidarity calls upon Highland Council and the Scottish Executive to build a creative partnership with the CFPA to ensure the Nigg facility is reopened for business as soon as possible on a not-for-profit basis and as a key part of the national renewables drive. This should include the compulsory purchase of the so-called ‘ransom strip’ as soon as possible.” |
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