MSP fights for the Hebrides' rights to Rockall

An MSP has called for Scotland - and in particular the Western isles - to benefit if the United Nations decides the seabed around Rockall belongs to the UK.

It was reported this month that the UN was likely to examine claims to the ownership of the remote islet - which lies around 300 miles west of the Hebrides - within weeks.

Ownership of the uninhabited outcrop has long been disputed by Britain, Ireland, Denmark and the Faroe Islands and Iceland. Denmark and the Faroe Islands made a submission to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) early in December.

Western Isles SNP MSP Alasdair Allan demanded to know what share of any oil revenues Scotland could expect to receive, if the islet was exploited.

The UN Commission is expected to report in March and talks between the four countries affected are likely to open again in May.

"The dispute about which country Rockall belongs to is much more to do with the continental shelf around the rock than the rock itself," he said. "Since 1972, the UK has declared Rockall 'part of Inverness-shire' - and, since local government reorganisation, that makes it part of the Western Isles."