Margarita Williams: Islanders' vision needs support

We who come from Harris, and our visitors who return year after year, know that we have a uniquely varied wild landscape, high mountains, miles of white sand beaches and wildlife unsurpassed by anywhere else I have seen.

Our national park-status working party carried out extensive research into the benefits to Harris that such status would bring, questioning other national parks on the pros and cons, and after consulting the Harris people, we voted 72 per cent in favour, as did our three local councillors.

Our working party includes people of talent and enthusiasm, some of whom brought us the first land buy-out in the Western Isles, the successful job-creating North Harris Trust and the recent West Side of Harris land buy-out. The huge amount of work they have put into this research should not be ignored.

For an economy in dramatic decline, with no jobs for our young people and our schools closing, the least we could have expected from our Western Isles Council was their support in our bid to become the next Scottish national park, bringing in government funding and up to 100 jobs, which would benefit the whole of the Western Isles. Instead, Western Isles Council sat on the proposal for a year, doing little to ascertain the benefits from the other two Scottish national parks before responding negatively. Such indifference beggars belief.

As a result the Scottish Government, though initially encouraging and responsive to the idea, cited the lack of support of the Western Isles Council and the present economic climate for turning down the proposal.

In gloomy economic times, the initiative of people who are prepared to put in the work required to help us move forward should be recognised and welcomed by our council and government.

We have the vision. It would be good to have the support to realise it.