Highland Council is a prime example of Scotland’s too big local authorities due to ‘creeping centralisation’ according to Building a Local Scotland campaigners
Scotland is one of the most centralised nations in Europe and Scottish councils are too large for the new age of local democracy, according to a coalition of former council leaders, politicians, journalists and academics.
Building a Local Scotland (BLS) singled out Highland Council as a major example of the problem in Scotland’s local democracy and the “creeping centralisation” that made the country “one of the least locally governed countries in the world”.
Kate Forbes: 'Let’s start by breaking up Highland Council – you heard it here first'
Caithness council petition lodged at Scottish Parliament
Highland MSP Emma Roddick calls for a separate Inverness council saying that the city 'unmet needs'
In Scotland, councils oversee an average population of 170,000 people compared to an average of 10,000 in Europe leading to calls for the creation of powerful city, town, island and local councils across the nation.
One of the main examples of this centralising trend was Highland Council. It covers a third of Scotland's landmass and 11 per cent of Great Britain and has a population of 235,000 all governed from Inverness.
It is physically larger than Wales (which has 22 local authorities), North Macedonia (with 80 municipalities) and Belgium (with one federal government, three language-based communities, three regional governments and 581 local councils).
Scotland also has the smallest number of councillors in Europe. England has an average of 2814 people per councillor, Norway 572 and Denmark 2216 but the average Scottish councillor looks after 4155 constituents.
That has led BLS to attract dozens of well known names to support its declaration, including people like Andy Wightman and former MSP Jean Urquhart, which is due to be announced later today in Edinburgh.
BLS said: “This means councillors, through no fault of their own, must take decisions about areas they barely know. And now, with the prospect of swingeing cuts in public spending, it’s likely they’ll take community-altering decisions without any locals in the room.
“BLS believes this must change and challenges every political party to admit the current system is unfit for purpose and breaches the contract made with the Scottish people 25 years ago.”
They are not alone. Last year’s SNP leadership election saw Kate Forbes argue: “Let’s start by breaking up Highland Council – you heard it here first. We know in the Highlands and Islands, the approach to social care, as you've mentioned, the approach to local government, the approach to fill in the potholes is going to look different in Portree than it does in Inverness.”
She was ultimately backed by the other contenders including eventual winner Humza Yousaf and Ash Regan but the three MSPs were far from the first to make the call.
Highland MSP Emma Roddick made a similar call back in 2021 arguing that Inverness has “unmet needs” due to the perception that Inverness gets everything.
The latter points would not be a position supported by those who called for Caithness to get its own council and health board by lodging a petition at the Scottish Parliament in 2022.
Speaking ahead of the launch of the Local Democracy Declaration, former coordinator of the Constitutional Convention, Esther Roberton said:
“When the Scottish Constitutional Convention unanimously agreed the final scheme for our Parliament, it contained a commitment to decentralise power across Scotland and ‘secure and maintain a strong and effective system of local government’ which would embody the principle of subsidiarity.
“That commitment has not been fulfilled by any Scottish government of any political complexion. Indeed, a quarter of a century later, Scotland is even more centralised than ever. It is time for our Parliament to honour the Convention’s commitment and work to build a truly local democracy.”
Willie Sullivan of the Electoral Reform Society said:
“Our research shows people want to put their time and energy into running local communities, but the vast size of councils makes that effectively impossible for most working-age Scots. The number of people coming forward to stand as councillors in Scotland is one of the smallest in Europe and we have the highest proportion of pensioners doing the job. Yet, the success of community buyouts shows all kinds of people put huge effort into civic life – if they have the power to make real change.”
Ewan Aitken, a member of COSLA’s Commission for Strengthening Local Democracy said:
“In 2014, COSLA’s pioneering Commission acknowledged that democracy has been hollowed out over 50 years by the loss of truly local councils and their replacement with remote, regional-sized authorities.
"Ten years ago, the report was largely overlooked – but the problem of distant democracy hasn’t gone away. Scotland’s towns, villages and islands need power in their own hands to involve, invigorate and innovate.”
Nordic Horizons Director and former Isle of Eigg Trust member Lesley Riddoch said:
“Scots are always astonished at the massive size of their councils compared to every other country in Europe, but don’t realise what we are missing. Put simply it is the chance to actively fix our own communities instead of watching them wither whilst being governed from afar.
"Of course, some communities have bought their land and other local assets. But escalating land prices makes that option increasingly tough and buyouts often leave volunteers exhausted and oversized councils intact.
"The Scottish Parliament can reverse centralisation and learn from neighbouring countries whose small councils have higher rates of participation without bureaucracy, paid councillors or highly paid officials.”
Professor Mike Danson, chair of his local development trust said:
“Politicians seem wary to take on the big, overdue task of decentralising Scotland. That’s why we believe a citizens’ assembly is the best way to take this process forward. Building a local Scotland is formed of non-politicians - individuals working across the political spectrum – and hope the public and civic Scotland will support our call for a Citizen’s Assembly to consider the evidence and devise a new system that improves democracy and the quality of decision making without costing a fortune.”
Ann McGuinness, feminist campaigner and director at Scottish Rural Action said:
“We know that there is enthusiasm the length and breadth of Scotland for more levers of control. We see this in community groups and local development trusts delivering improvements without resources and against the odds. It’s time to re-design local democracy and empower our communities."
Dave Watson, Director of the Jimmy Reid Foundation, said:
“We can create a fairer Scotland where local people have real local power, Frameworks would protect employment rights and let communities have political control without duplicating administration. In 2020, the Jimmy Reid Foundation produced a report on these issues, Building Stronger Communities, developing the ideas in the earlier COSLA Commission on Strengthening Local Democracy. The rest of Europe has managed this for centuries. We don’t need more reports – we need the action and focus citizens can bring to bear.”
The Declaration: Building a New Local Democracy in Scotland states:
We, the undersigned, enthusiastically support the purpose and legitimacy of the Scottish Parliament and commend the many successes of devolved government during its first 25 years.
We believe that Scotland now needs to fulfil the promise that devolution would also bring a return to genuine local democracy.
We note that the average Scottish 'local' council has 170k citizens. The EU average is 10k. Community Councils have £400 pa and no statutory powers. Scotland has no truly local democracy.
We therefore call for the creation of powerful City, town, island and local councils across Scotland - not further centralisation, nor the top-down imposition of elected mayors.
We call for citizens' assemblies, to gather local and international evidence about Scotland's local democratic deficit, and to recommend a process to return Scotland to international democratic norms.
