Councils join forces to fight for status after Brexit

Local authorities across the Highlands and Islands are set to join forces in a bid to retain their special status in the post-Brexit funding landscape.

Under the European Union’s programme for peripheral and economically challenged areas, the region has benefited to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds over the last 30 years, enabling major investments in roads, causeways, bridges and the likes of Sabhal Mor Ostaig and UHI.

The current six-year programme, worth £193m, comes to an end next year.

Following the vote to leave the EU, the UK Government gave a pledge to continue with a similar funding programme under the guise of a Shared Prosperity Fund, aimed at tackling inequalities and supporting an Industrial Strategy.

But with no detail forthcoming and the prospect of any money being shared across the UK, the councils in the Highlands and Islands are deeply concerned that their region will lose out, despite it facing major challenges in population retention.

A joint meeting between the island councils and Highland Council will now be held at the start of next month in a bid to kickstart a concerted lobbying campaign.

Malcolm Burr, chief executive of Western Isles Council, said: “What we desperately need to know, and what we still don’t know, is in relation to the quite substantial issues such as how much funding will be available, how it will be divided up across the UK, what activities will be eligible for support and also who will take decisions over how spent.

“These are pretty fundamental points and we still don’t have sufficient detail on that.”

Highlands and Islands Labour MSP David Stewart said: “It is essential that the UK Government confirm the scale and scope of the Shared Prosperity Fund as soon as possible.” the money is