The Hydro Ness project team is hugely proud to be announced as a finalist in the Highlands & Islands Renewable Energy Awards 2022. The project is nominated under the category of ‘Best On-Shore Renewable Energy Project Award'.
Bill passes allowing nationals from certain countries to stand as local councillors. An electoral reform bill allowing nationals from countries where a relevant treaty has been agreed, including Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal and Spain, to become local councillors has been passed by Parliament.
Governance arrangements for the new Council, including senior councillor structure and associated remuneration have been agreed at The Highland Council meeting on 9 June 2022. The following Office Bearers were appointed to Strategic Committees by agreement of Council.
Scotland's councils have had a pivotal role in supporting and working with communities as they responded to the impacts of Covid-19. Now councils must lead recovery work with and alongside their local communities, focusing on getting the services people need in place as pressures and stresses escalate and impact the day to day lives of individuals and communities.
The Hydro Ness, a hydroelectric generator on the banks of the River Ness, is now fully operational. Hydro Ness is a 92kW Archimedes screw hydroelectric scheme and interactive visitor experience which will generate over 500,000 kWh of renewable energy each year.
The new Leader of Highland Council, Raymond Bremner has indicated that the economy will be a key focus for the Council as he welcomed the announcement that thousands of jobs would be created by an Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport. He responded to the initial research published today by Opportunity Cromarty Firth and Biggar Economics which said winning the Freeport bid would stimulate manufacturing, creating thousands of jobs, and revolutionise the Highland economy.
See poster..
All the results for the 2022 Highland Council election have been declared. They are as follows: Independent - 21 Scottish Conservative and Unionist - 10 Scottish Green Party - 4 Scottish Labour Party - 2 Scottish Liberal Democrats - 15 Scottish National Party (SNP) - 22 Total elected 74 The first meeting of the new Council will be held on Thursday 26 May.
The Highland Council and their development partners Hub North Scotland (Wick) ltd have agreed that reinstatement works for a section of wall cladding for the games hall at Wick Community Campus will be carried out during the coming summer holiday period. This is to minimise disruption to the building users, in particular pupils at Wick High School, who are currently undergoing national exams until June.
The Highland Council is inviting individuals, community groups and local businesses in Thurso to have their say on determining how the historic centre of the town is managed in the future. Following the success of an event held at the end of March, the Council will be hosting another public drop-in session at the start of May to highlight the draft Thurso Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan and encourage input and feedback from the local community.
The search is on for a new Youth Convener to champion the cause of young people in the Highlands. The Highland Youth Convener is a sounding board for youth issues in the Highlands and has a direct line into policy makers and decision takers.
Postal votes are being opened every day but will not be counted until Friday 6th May along with the votes cast at polling stations. So far Thurso and West Caithness have returned 1947 out of 3049 issued amounting to 63.86% Meanwhile Wick and East Caithness have returned 1791 out of 3111 - 57.57%.
Highland Council Trading Standards are warning unsuspecting members of the public to be on their guard and not fall victim to a COVID-19 contact tracing text scam that is currently in circulation. The scam involves an unsolicited text message from ‘TestNTrace' advising the recipient that they have been a close contact of someone who has contracted the Omicron variant.
New funding has been secured for the Spirit of the Highlands and Islands project to create innovative and interactive digital content showcasing people's stories of the region. The grant comes from the Natural and Cultural Heritage Fund (NCHF), led by NatureScot and part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
With less than two weeks until the voter registration deadline for local elections in May, the Electoral Registration Officer for Highland & Western Isles urges residents to make sure they are registered in time. Anyone living in Scotland who will be 16 or over on 5 May, can register to vote in these elections.
The Highland Council is embracing the climate change agenda by increasing the amount of set aside and wildlife corridors across the area. In 2019, Highland Council declared a Climate and Ecological Emergency and have committed to being a low carbon Highlands by 2025.
Sponsorship and support for the awards ceremony was provided by TUSKER and the Inverness Common Good Fund. The Council extends its thanks to both for making last week's celebration possible.
Allan Gunn has been appointed by The Highland Council as Executive Chief Officer - Communities and Place. Mr Gunn was recently Interim Executive Chief Officer – Communities and Place with the Council since January 2022 prior to which he was Executive Chief Officer - Transformation (from 2020) and Chief Officer Resources (Care and Learning) from 2019-2020.
In The Highland Council's response to the Scottish Government draft new National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), concerns have been raised that the proposed NPF4 falls short on delivering key regional priorities for Highland and also in achieving Scotland’s transition to net zero. NPF4 will be a long-term plan that will guide spatial development, set out national planning policies, designate national developments and highlight regional spatial priorities.
UNISON, Scotland's largest union, will consult local government members on taking industrial action over pay. The decision was made today (Friday) at UNISON's national local government conference after members rejected an initial pay offer from COSLA.