Multibillion-pound tsunami of Highland renewable projects sparks call for locals to ‘unite’ as MP Jamie Stone voices concerns in Westminster

The multibillion-pound tsunami of Highland renewable energy developments has sparked a call for people from across the region to unite to make their voices heard and redress what has been branded “democratic failure”.

A convention that is to be held in Beauly this Saturday will bring together community councils and members of the public from across the region to air their views on what has become an area of deep concern for many.

At its heart are concerns that in the headlong rush to establish renewable energy infrastructure local communities have not just been forgotten but ignored, and some even feel dismissed.

Energy companies, most prominently SSEN, have launched a bewildering range of plans to build overhead pylons, substations, and battery storage energy facilities to capitalise on pumped storage hydro projects and wind farms.

The move is seen by the government as essential to meet its climate goals but it comes with a not insignificant impact on the Highland environment – not least on Loch Ness and with a monster new Fanellan substation near Beauly.

So community councils arranged a meeting to be chaired by Highland councillor Helen Crawford, who has pushed for more community involvement in decision-making that often falls to Edinburgh’s energy consents unit.

She led the campaign to force a reluctant Highland Council SNP-Highland Independent administration to accept her demand that it provide a live map of all current and planned renewable projects.

Her efforts were applauded as “brave” in Westminster when far north MP Jamie Stone called on the Scottish and UK governments to listen closely to the outcome of the meeting.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Stone said: “There are proposals to have powerlines from Spittal in Caithness to Lochbuie and Beauly - it is massive - and there are lots of applications for battery storage systems.

“It does feel as if the technology is racing way ahead of the statutory authorities of the Scottish and UK governments and that we are playing catch-up. We are being left behind in a cloud of dust, and that worries me enormously.”

He added: “We should not simply forge ahead with this sort of stuff until we know exactly what we are doing.

“Helen Crawford… has been bravely standing up saying: ‘I think we need to have a way of structuring this that takes the communities with us, that does not seem that we are imposing something from on high’.

“She is referring to batteries, grid improvements and so on. Nobody is saying that they do not believe in getting to net zero, but let us take people with us when we do it.”

Cllr Crawford argues that the “democratic failure” is continuing because no senior elected council leadership are planning to attend the meeting, despite leader Raymond Bremner opening the SSEN hub in Inverness.

“We must unite and have a proper discussion about what’s being referred to as a ‘once in a generation change’,” she said. “At present, there is no public conversation about what this will mean for the Highlands as an entity.

“For example, neither the community voice, nor the tourism sector was present at the recent Convention of the Highlands and Islands in Strathpeffer, when key decision-makers were discussing a Paper on Transformational Change, with the lion’s share of that being about major energy infrastructure.

“That imbalance needs to be addressed - we need to hear from all parts of the Highlands and not allow decisions to be made in an echo chamber.

“Some communities welcome the influx of jobs and the proposed investment, but some are raising a red flag, because they are concerned about what life will be like living in that new industrial landscape - they fear for the value of their home, the impact on their jobs and loss of amenity. Their voice needs to be heard.

“I understand that both the leader and convener have declined to attend and I would respectfully ask them to reconsider that. As elected members, we have a specific democratic function to represent our communities and engage with them.

“This is a major event and expression of the community voice - I warmly invite all elected members to come and hear that.”

Convener Bill Lobban said: “I generally do not attend meetings with objectors or developers and in this specific case clearly the invitation is from a group of objectors.

“I prefer to maintain my impartiality and consider individual applications on their merit. Which is more than can be said of some elected members.

“For clarity I did not attend the opening of the SSEN office for the same reason.”

Cllr Bremner said: “I declined the invitation. I have given my reasons as a member of the North Planning Applications Committee and my principle of not attending group meetings or gatherings such as this in respect of planning applications whether for or against.

“I also have a long-standing engagement on that day, organised last year, that I will be attending in Oban. Regardless of my stated principle in response to the invitation, I would not be able to attend in any case.”

A Highland Council spokeswoman said: “We are unsure of which officials had been invited. There is a likelihood of discussion on specific proposals that are in, or are to be submitted to the council shortly, on which a planning officer would not be able to be drawn into discussion. Planning officers would not normally attend such meetings for that reason.”

And asked if Highland Council will take any note of the outcome of the meeting or have any broader response to the event, the spokeswoman said: “If there are matters that are relevant to planning and/or the council’s response to Scottish Government, then these should be stated in representations to the Scottish Government.”

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