Independence zealot fined over election expenses
HE has repeatedly refused to accept that Shetland and Orkney are part of Scotland or the United Kingdom.
But pensioner Stuart Hill has finally been fined £500 for failing to declare election expenses in a case that has dragged on for three years.
Hill, who gained the nickname ‘Captain Calamity’ in 2001 after trying to sail sound Britain in a 15ft dinghy, had denied the offence.
The 77-year-old, whose exploits sparked five lifeboat launches and two rescue helicopter call-outs, polled only 245 votes in the 2017 election.
Hill repeatedly challenged the jurisdiction of the court and refused to acknowledge his name as the case dragged on for three years.
The pensioner, who in 2008 acquired a tiny outcrop off Shetland, named it Forvik and declared it a crown dependency, has long claimed Orkney and Shetland are neither part of the UK or Scotland.
In February, he was sentenced to two months for contempt of court after he unlawfully recorded proceedings on his Blackberry.
Hill, of Cunningsburgh, Orkney, was on trial at Kirkwall Sheriff Court, after standing as a candidate in the 2017 general election, in which he represented himself as his own election agent.
He has repeatedly stated that the charge should not stand, as it had never been proven that Orkney and Shetland are part of Scotland.
On Tuesday, former chief executive of Orkney Islands Council, Alistair Buchan, who also served as election returning officer, was called as a defence witness by Mr Hill.
Mr Buchan said that the election had been run in accordance with rules, by him and his staff, adding: ‘It was my job to run the election efficiently, and in accordance with the laws of the country.’
Sheriff Robert MacDonald repeated that he was not entertaining any further argument over Orkney and Shetland not being part of the UK, saying it had been raised earlier, and ‘the matter is done’.
Hill said that his defence rested entirely on proof that Orkney and Shetland are not part of Scotland.
Summing up, Procurator Fiscal Sue Foard said that in terms of a section of the Representation of the People Act, election expenses had to be declared, and it was an illegal practice not to do so.
She said three crown witnesses, election manager Fiona Ratter, Audrey Waterson, her assistant, and Jan Riise, who held the position of deputy returning officer, all identified Mr Hill, and had dealings with him in the election process.
They spoke of him not making a return by the deadline, and of his further responses over the issue.
She added: ‘His dispute appears to be that since the election, in his opinion, had no legal basis in Orkney or Shetland, therefore he was not subject to UK laws, on which the charge was based. I would submit that he has committed the offence, and the Crown has proved that beyond reasonable doubt.’
Hill said: ‘At no point has personal jurisdiction been established. I have never identified myself as anything other than the living man. I have not and do not claim or admit to being the legal fiction Stuart Alan Hill on the court papers to whom the complaint is addressed.’
Sheriff MacDonald said that this was just a further example of ‘the nonsense Mr Hill had created in this court, that has led to the case taking ten times longer than it needed to’.
He then found Hill guilty and fined him £500.
Last week, councillors in Shetland voted in favour of exploring selfdetermination, amid frustration over centralised decision making and reduced government funding for the islands.
Council convener Malcolm Bell has said the next step is to enter into dialogue on the matter with the UK and Scottish governments.
‘Nonsense Mr Hill had created’