Caution is needed over Highland Council’s investment plan; and posties’ working conditions are being made more difficult

‘Strong measure of caution’ needed over Highland Council’s investment plan

Letter from Cllr Jim McGillivray, East Sutherland and Edderton ward

I read with great interest Cllr Gale’s thoughts on the Highland Investment Plan (HIP) in the Northern Times’ issue of 10th January. It is sobering indeed to read of the current council debt of nearly £1.3 billion with associated annual loan charges of £93.3 million.

It came as some surprise to notice the responses to Richard’s article, which came in on 17th January from Cllr Paul Oldham (SNP, Nairn & Cawdor) and 24th January from Cllr Michael Cameron (SNP, Inverness Central), for who would have thought that our humble Raggie would be read cover to cover in such distant and exotic places as Inverness and Nairn.

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The issue so hotly debated is the council’s proposed Highland Investment Plan, which directly involves the council borrowing a further £2.1 billion over the next 20 years for capital-intensive infrastructure projects such as the construction of new schools and the upgrade of our many miles of Highland roads.

The first 10-year phase of this has in its schedule a new-build primary school in Brora and new secondary schools for Golspie and Dornoch.

It cannot be denied that the ambitions of the HIP are commendable, especially as we in Sutherland get very little from Highland Council as it retreats from its rural responsibilities into its urban heartlands.

It’s only 10 years since the council rushed to shut down the Sutherland Education bus service operating from Drummuie and now it has spent a million buying the private D&E coach operation to service Inverness needs.

It has closed 11 rural primary schools in those 10 years, with a further seven mothballed and another two about to enter the corridor of doom.

At the end of the day, the risks associated with borrowing the significant sum of £2.1 billion cannot be taken lightly, especially in the context of potential loan charges of around £300 million per annum if the capital element is not regularly repaid.

A strong measure of caution must be the order of the day, and the professional judgement and experience of the most senior council officers, especially the chief executive and chief finance officer, must be the key part of the decision process rather than the whims and vanity projects of councillors.

In that context, it may interest readers to note that, over this recent 10-year period, we are now on our fourth chief executive and fourth chief finance officer; such are the pressures of these positions.

Posties’ working conditions are being made more difficult

Letter from Alan J Hamilton, Lochside, Lairg

Your front page story on the reason for Royal Mail delivery delays in Lochinver (Northern Times, January 24) sounded familiar, and I agree with Mr Macleod’s assessment of the situation.

I enjoyed 10 years at Lairg Delivery Office, and the winter tyre issue isn’t new, but another crazy Royal Mail rule for posties is that they may not be on the same delivery round all week, so if they have to return to the office with mail, it will be extra for someone else to deliver the following day, so they will do their best to clear everything on the day.

Winter tyres on driving wheels would clearly be of great benefit, and I reckoned at the time that they could last two winters if removed in the spring and stored.

If Ofcom is imposing penalties on Royal Mail for poor delivery performance, you would think that they would be helping posties to do their job, but like many companies today, working conditions are actually being made more difficult.

As an example, at Lairg Delivery Office, whilst large parcels are delivered early, smaller parcels and mail are on a second lorry, which used to arrive around 8am, but now it’s around 9.30am, which obviously has a knock-on effect for onward delivery to outlying delivery offices.

Scanning of parcels into the office, on delivery, and with a photo if required, is a big issue with 100 per cent compliance from posties expected and monitored.

However, unlike most other carriers, posties’ driving is also monitored for speed, cornering, acceleration, and braking, so that is an extra discipline requiring concentration.

Mr Macleod speaks of the excellent service here in Sutherland, and we are very fortunate, but with the new Czech billionaire owner taking over, I wouldn’t expect any improvements to actually assist posties. I suspected at the time of privatisation in 2013 that the focus would shift from service to shareholders, and it seems that is the priority.

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