Efforts to buy North Queensferry's Albert Hotel raised in Westminster
Last month, the North Queensferry Trust vowed to continue their fight after Scottish Ministers rejected their application for a community right to buy of the premises.
The organisation want to restore the historic building for the good of the village and have lodged an appeal against the judgement.
Addressing the Leader of the House, Lucy Powell MP, Ms Ward said community ownerships of assets can be "incredibly valuable".
She continued: "In North Queensferry, the community is working hard to take ownership of the Albert Hotel, but their efforts were blocked by SNP government ministers who rejected their application to exercise their right to buy."
In response, the Leader of the House stated: "I'm really sorry to hear that the Scottish Government has rejected the application for her constituent. That is something that I don't think should have happened. We will be debating the importance of community right to buy in forthcoming legislation."
Melanie Ward MP at the Albert Hotel. (Image: Contributed) Ms Ward also recently met with Iain Mitchell, Chair of the North Queensferry Community Council, during his visit to Westminster. They discussed the importance of the hotel to the community and the widespread local support for the Save the Albert campaign.
She added: "The Albert Hotel is a much-loved part of North Queensferry's identity. The SNP Scottish Government's decision to deny the community the chance to secure it for public use is short-sighted and deeply disappointing.
"I will continue to press for this decision to be reversed and show my support to the Save the Albert campaign. Local people deserve to be listened to on the future of their communities.'
The Albert Hotel's owners, Festival Inns, previously applied for a change of use so they could convert the C-listed building into flats but this was met with 133 letters of objection.
Read more:
The plans were rejected by Fife Council's west and central planning committee and an appeal to the Scottish Government also failed.
Villagers in North Queensferry then formed the not-for-profit company, The Albert Community Group Ltd, with the aim of buying the building and restoring it for community use.
They previously said that if successful, it is hoped the bar would be returned to the ground floor, with a restaurant created and rooms made available to community groups.
Following the decision to reject the community right to buy application, Trust chair Iain Mitchell said they had identified "a number of procedural and substantive errors" both in the process and the decision.
"We are going to exercise our right to take an Appeal to the Sheriff," he added. "The fight to save the Albert continues."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC News
an hour ago
- NBC News
House passes Republican-led bills to repeal D.C. laws on noncitizen voting and policing
WASHINGTON — The Republican-controlled House is poised to pass a trio of bills this week to repeal Washington, D.C., laws on immigration, voting and policing, even as it has yet to restore a painful a $1 billion cut to the city's budget. The House passed two of the bills on Tuesday. One would bar noncitizens from voting in local elections in the nation's capital, overturning a D.C. law that was passed in 2022. The other would restore collective bargaining rights and a statute of limitations for D.C. police officers involved in disciplinary cases. Then, on Thursday, the House is expected to pass a third bill, the District of Columbia Federal Immigration Compliance Act, which would require the D.C. government to comply with requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security to share information and detain undocumented immigrants. Under current D.C. law, local authorities do not work with federal immigration officials unless they have a judicial warrant. All together, the bills represent House Republicans' attempt to assert authority over deep-blue D.C. at a time when the GOP has unified control of the federal government. ' Home rule ' — where the D.C. mayor and city council make their own laws but Congress has the ability to review them — has long been a point of contention. Democrats have pushed in recent years to grant full statehood to D.C., while Republicans have slammed decisions made by local leaders and sought to reverse them. 'D.C.'s City Council made radical decisions in our nation's capital under the Biden-Harris administration, passing local laws that are woefully inconsistent with national standards or constitutional principles,' Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, the chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee who authored the GOP voting bill, said in a statement to NBC News. 'I'm proud that the House is taking action to overturn several of these reckless measures — including my legislation to prohibit noncitizens from voting in local D.C. elections,' he said. At the same time, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Republican leaders have been dragging their feet on a legislative fix for D.C.'s budget. A government funding bill that Congress passed in March to avert a shutdown included a provision requiring the city to revert back to fiscal year 2024 funding levels, leaving it with a $1.1 billion shortfall. The move was quickly met with opposition from local D.C. leaders. The Senate voted by unanimous consent in March to undo it and restore D.C.'s authority to use local tax dollars as its leaders see fit. President Donald Trump endorsed the fix, calling on the House to 'immediately' pass that bill in a social media post on March 28. But months later, Johnson still hasn't held a vote on the bill, prompting criticism from Democrats and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. 'It's absurd that the House hasn't taken it up. It's absolutely irresponsible, unfair and beneath the credibility of leadership,' said Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., who represents a congressional district just D.C. 'It's not our money, it's D.C.'s money ... and I don't know why the speaker hasn't put the Senate bill on the floor. It'll pass overwhelmingly.' 'This is a particular egregious example of substituting their judgment for those who are locally elected to govern the District of Columbia,' Hoyer said. Last month, Johnson told reporters he was in communication with Bowser and that the House would take up the funding fix 'as quickly as possible.' The speaker said that passing Trump's massive domestic policy package had taken up 'all of our energy' and insisted the delay was not for a 'political purpose.' 'We're working on it right now. It's not like we've closed the door to that,' House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told NBC News on Tuesday. 'But obviously there are other problems we're trying to resolve along the way.' Bowser's office denounced the GOP bills to revoke DC law and — while noting that D.C. has mitigated the most 'catastrophic' impacts of the budget restrictions — urged Congress to pass the funding fix. 'Mayor Bowser continues to oppose all congressional interference in the lives and affairs of Washingtonians. DC will continue to fight to protect our home rule and self-determination,' a Bowser spokesperson said in an email. 'If Congress wants to be helpful, they should pass the District of Columbia Local Funds Act to fix their damage to DC's FY25 budget.' Johnson's office had no comment when asked Tuesday when — or whether — he still plans to hold a vote on the funding fix. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., the No. 4 in Republican leadership, said, 'I honestly don't know. I haven't heard yes or no,' when asked if the funding fix will come up for a vote. Other congressional Democrats said Republicans should stay out of D.C. issues. 'It's bad enough, usually, when they're playing in D.C. local, home rule issues,' said Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., whose district abuts Washington. 'But then to do it at a time when they haven't returned the $1.1 billion is especially egregious.' Immigration has dominated the national political debate this week, with protests erupting in Los Angeles in response to the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts. Republicans said the fight over immigration is a winning issue for the party, and they've continued to lean into it with the legislation on the floor this week. 'If D.C. wants illegals to vote, we've made it clear at the federal level people here illegally should not vote in any elections,' Scalise said. 'We're still the most generous nation in the world in terms of our legal immigration system,' he continued, 'but we have to fix our broken immigration system. And you could just see what's going on in L.A. to prove the point.'
Daily Record
2 hours ago
- Daily Record
Rangers will never suffer Crystal Palace UEFA sweat as SFA chief makes dual ownership rules clear
Mike Mulraney explains that Ibrox takeover as well as Hearta and Hibs deal meet key criteria set by Hampden beaks Mike Mulraney insists the SFA would never allow dual ownership where it could cost clubs a place in Europe. Co-Leeds United investor, the 49ers group, has just bought a minority share in Rangers, similar to Brighton owner Tony Bloom at Hearts and Bournemouth's holding company Black Knight who have put money into Hibs. SFA chiefs have given these deals the green light but only because they are minority investments in the Scottish clubs. English FA Cup winners Crystal Palace are sweating on their European inclusion for next season because they also have control of French side Lyon. Mulraney said: 'We make sure if ever there is a contention about a dual-ownership model whereby the Scottish club would be seen as subordinate, that cannot be. You can't get investment rights unless you agree the Scottish club is never subordinate. 'In the event UEFA said, 'these two clubs can't play in the same competition, we've changed the rules', nobody really thought about it. The SFA ensures that the Scottish club is never subordinate.'
Daily Record
2 hours ago
- Daily Record
Bathgate MP praises role of company in delivering national environmental goals
TOMRA, a global leader in reverse vending technology, hosted Kirsteen Sullivan MP at their Scottish storage and distribution centre, where she was welcomed by John Lee, TOMRA's Vice-President for Public Affairs UK and Ireland. MP Kirsteen Sullivan has praised the role of local innovation in delivering national environmental goals following a visit to TOMRA's UK hub in Bathgate. TOMRA, a global leader in reverse vending technology, hosted the Bathgate and Linlithgow MP at their Scottish storage and distribution centre, where she was welcomed by John Lee, TOMRA's Vice-President for Public Affairs UK and Ireland. The visit provided an in-depth look at TOMRA's multi-million-pound investment in the UK, including live demonstrations of reverse vending machines (RVMs) built for retailers of all sizes. Founded in Norway in 1972, TOMRA operates over 105,000 RVMs across more than 60 markets, collecting over 46 billion beverage containers each year. Their proven systems across Europe consistently achieve recycling return rates of 92% to 98%, offering a powerful solution to resource recovery and waste reduction. Kirsteen said: 'It's incredibly inspiring to see a global sustainability leader like TOMRA investing right here in Bathgate. The scale of their impact and ambition is matched by the strategic role this facility plays in the UK's journey towards Net Zero. 'Deposit Return Schemes are one of the most practical and effective tools we have to move towards a circular economy - helping individuals, businesses and governments to treat waste as a resource. 'Seeing the technology up close makes clear how transformative this system could be for communities across the UK.' John Lee, TOMRA's Vice-President for Public Affairs UK and Ireland, added: 'We were delighted to welcome Kirsteen to our distribution hub in Bathgate. 'The support of Members of Parliament is vital if DRS is to become a reality in 2027. Maintaining our presence in Bathgate will ensure we can provide an excellent service to our customers across the country and give us a base for the technical and support jobs which will be created in Scotland.' The UK Government has committed to launching a consistent, UK-wide DRS by October 2027, with a single deposit level across Scotland, England and Northern Ireland. TOMRA's Bathgate operations are well-positioned to help make that vision a reality by creating local jobs to support a greener, more sustainable future.
