Latest news with #JohnDuff
The Courier
29-05-2025
- Business
- The Courier
Perth Harbour closure saga costs taxpayers £600k, claims top councillor
A senior councillor says the failed closure of Perth Harbour has cost taxpayers more than £600,000. John Duff blasted the expense as colleagues agreed a plan to end the stalemate on Wednesday. Twenty-seven months have passed since Perth and Kinross Council voted to shut Perth harbour to commercial traffic. The February 2023 decision was meant to save the council £157,000 a year. But chiefs have been unable to reach an agreement with Transport Scotland. And they have had to spend an additional £308,000 on keeping Perth Harbour open since then. Just eight boats have docked there in that time. The council's economy and infrastructure committee approved a new strategy on Wednesday. Officials will now pursue a harbour revision order (HRO), rather than a full closure order. That means Perth and Kinross Council will stay on as statutory harbour authority. But the harbour will be closed to commercial vessels over 24 metres. Mr Duff, leader of the opposition Conservative group, asked how long this was likely to take – and how much more expense the council would have to bear. 'If I'm reading this correctly, the failure to close the harbour has meant we haven't made the proposed savings totalling £314,000,' he said. 'And instead we've had to incur expenses of £308,000 in keeping the harbour open. 'Do we have an idea of what additional costs the council might incur over the next 18 months on top of the £600,000 it has already cost us?' Serge Merone, the council's strategic lead for economy, development and planning, said officers were hoping to reduce costs to around £65,000 a year. Council leader Grant Laing said he shared colleagues' frustrations. But he said the problems had arisen because no one has ever tried to close a harbour before. 'There's no framework to comply with, no legal advice to work to,' he said. Liberal-Democrat councillor Willie Robertson suggested the council should be writing to the Transport Minister to protest Transport Scotland's 'incompetence'. But others raised questions about the council's own legal advice ahead of the closure vote in February 2023. Councillors also agreed to axe Perth Harbour Board after hearing it hasn't met since November 2023. But the move sparked anger from the board's departing chairman. Bailie Chris Ahern, who is a member of the committee, claimed the board had not been told it was for the chop. And he said it did not get advance notice of the recommendation to close the harbour in 2023 either. Mr Ahern said the board's demise poses questions over who will take on its responsibilities. He claimed a jet-ski was involved in a near-miss with another river user last week, and said this was one of the areas where the board had been working to keep people safe.
The Herald Scotland
29-05-2025
- General
- The Herald Scotland
Free Gaelic language courses to be launched in Perth and Kinross
A Perth and Kinross Gaelic network is being established to link together people involved in, or with an interest in Gaelic. It is hoped to recruit Gaelic 'ambassadors' from the Perth and Kinross communities, who will help to share information about Gaelic events to people not on social media and potentially act as a Gaelic focal point in their communities. A Perth and Kinross Council Staff Gaelic network has also been established, to encourage staff to engage with Gaelic and encourage use of Gaelic in the workplace. Efforts to promote Gaelic include the Gaelic in Perthshire Facebook page, which was relaunched in February as part of World Gaelic Week. This year also marked the 25th anniversary of Gaelic Medium Education at Goodlyburn Primary School in Perth, which was celebrated with a concert in February. Learning and Families Convener Councillor John Rebbeck said: "Gaelic is an enormously important part of Scotland's culture. "We want to see Gaelic thriving in Perth and Kinross and we have some fantastic initiatives underway to support those who speak the language and encourage more people to start learning it. "Our new eight-week introduction to Gaelic will be an ideal way for those who've fancied learning Gaelic to get a grounding in the basics in a relaxed environment, while the guided self-study course will give them the option of taking their Gaelic to the next level. "The Action Plan reaffirms our commitment to supporting the Gaelic language and culture, ensuring it continues to thrive across Perth and Kinross." Perth and Kinross Council's' Gaelic Ambassador Councillor John Duff said: "It is fantastic to see such support for the Gaelic language and I encourage everyone with an interest in learning the language to sign up to one of the courses."
