Skye MP '˜very angry' by claims that island is full up

Skye's MP has urged Highland Council to help the island cope with the influx of summer '¨visitors.

Tourists on the view point of the Kilt Rock Basaltic cliffs at Staffin on Skye. Picture: GUENTER FISCHER/BROKER/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK

Ian Blackford, the SNP’s Westminster leader, said he was “very angry” over claims that Skye is “bursting at the seams”, adding that they could damage the island’s economy.

His comments came after police advised visitors last week to book accommodation before travelling, amid reports that people had been asking for help at the police station as they had nowhere to stay.

The warning led to claims that the island is overcrowded
in the summer, which Mr Blackford, the MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, said were misleading and damaging.

He said: “I’m not alone in being very angry at this,
given all the hard work that local people here have done to make it a destination 
visitors from all over the world want to come to. Yes, there are pinch points in a small number of places and we need to have a strategy for those, but 
Highland Council needs to step up to the plate to help solve these issues.

“This is a fantastic problem
to have and the last thing we want is for word to go out that the island is not open for 
business.”