After six months, the lights finally go out

Published on Tuesday 8 July 2008 22:16

AN ISLAND community's street lights were left burning day and night for more than six months, waiting for council workers to repair a fault.

The lamps that light up Craighouse, the only big settlement on Jura, stayed on from December until two weeks ago.

Donald Ewen Darroch, the secretary of Jura Community Council, said: "(We] complained about it several times and individuals complained directly to Argyll and Bute Council."

He claimed the situation arose because the council did not have a locally based electrician.

Andy Law, the head of operational services at Argyll and Bute Council, said the council paid Scottish and Southern Energy a fixed rate for electricity, so there would be no extra cost because the lights stayed on so long.

Jim Mather, the energy minister and MSP for Argyll and Bute, said: "This episode is unfortunate, but might end up being very useful as it underpins the need for the public and people in different organisations to work more closely together."