Highlands and Islands

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The Highlands and Islands region. Some Highland districts are not shown. Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region).svg
The Highlands and Islands region. Some Highland districts are not shown.

The Highlands and Islands is an area of Scotland broadly covering the Scottish Highlands, plus Orkney, Shetland and Outer Hebrides (Western Isles).

Contents

The Highlands and Islands are sometimes defined as the area to which the Crofters' Act of 1886 applied. This area consisted of eight counties of Scotland:

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) uses a broader definition also used at Eurostat's NUTS level 2, and there has been a Highlands and Islands electoral region of the Scottish Parliament since 1999. [1]

In Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service the name refers to the local government areas (council areas) of Highland, Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles. Northern, as in Northern Constabulary , is also used to refer to this area. [2]

As of early 2021, Police Scotland operated six Command Areas in Highlands and Islands: North Highland, Inverness, South Highland, Orkney Islands, Shetland Island and Western Isles. Each had a Local Area Commander and a Chief Inspector. The police service works in partnership with Highland Council, Shetland, Orkney and Western Isles Councils. [3]

The HITRANS (Highlands and Islands Partnership for Transport), established in 2006, covers most of the council areas of Argyll and Bute, Highland, Moray, Orkney and the Western Isles. Shetland is covered by the separate Shetland Partnership for Transport. [4] Helensburgh and Lomond is covered by SPT. [5]

A 2018 estimate stated that population was 469,365, an increase of 0.5% from 2011. A higher than average percentage were self-employed compared to Scotland (11.0% compared to 8.7%). The unemployment rate was lower than in Scotland in general, 2.3% vs. 3.2%, and the employment rate was higher at 78.6% vs. 74.7%. [6]

The restrictions required by the worldwide pandemic increased unemployment in the Highlands and Islands in summer 2020 to 5.7%; that was significantly higher than the 2.4 per cent in 2019. The rates were said to be highest in "Lochaber, Skye and Wester Ross and Argyll and the Islands". [7] [8] A December 2020 report stated that between March (just before the effects of pandemic were noted) and December, the unemployment rate increased by "more than 97%" and suggested that the outlook was even worse for spring 2021. [9]

Politics

Highlands and Islands is an electoral region of the Scottish Parliament. In the 2007 election, this region was the last to declare its regional votes, which were the decisive results in determining that the Scottish National Party overtook Scottish Labour to obtain the largest representation in the Scottish Parliament by one seat. [10]

In the June 2017 election, Angus MacNeil, Drew Hendry and Ian Blackford (all SNP) were re-elected in Highlands and Islands. One new MP was elected, Jamie Stone(Lib Dem). [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Highland (council area) Council area of Scotland

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Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region) Scottish Parliament electoral region

The Highlands and Islands is one of the eight electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament which were created in 1999. Eight of the parliament's first past the post constituencies are sub-divisions of the region and it elects seven of the 56 additional-member Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs).

Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Scottish Parliament constituency) Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood), in use between 1999 and 2011. It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it was one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Ross, Skye and Inverness West (Scottish Parliament constituency)

Ross, Skye and Inverness West was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber (Scottish Parliament constituency) Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It was one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

University of the Highlands and Islands University in northern Scotland

The University of the Highlands and Islands is a tertiary university composed of Academic Partners which are the 13 colleges and research institutions in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland delivering higher education. Its executive office is in the former Royal Northern Infirmary building in Inverness.

Argyll and Bute (Scottish Parliament constituency) Scottish Parliament constituency

Argyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering most of the council area of Argyll and Bute. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Moray (Scottish Parliament constituency) Constituency for the Scottish Parliament

Moray is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering most of the council area of Moray. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies within the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Orkney (Scottish Parliament constituency) Scottish parliament constituency

Orkney is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering the council area of Orkney. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Shetland (Scottish Parliament constituency) Constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Shetland is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering the council area of Shetland. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Scottish Parliament constituency) Scottish Parliament constituency

Na h-Eileanan an Iar, formerly the Western Isles, is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering the council area of Na h-Eileanan Siar. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Northern Constabulary

The Northern Constabulary was the territorial police force responsible for Northern Scotland, covering the Highland council area along with the Western Isles, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands, which make up most of the Highlands and Islands area. It was the police force covering the largest geographical area in the United Kingdom, equivalent to the size of Belgium, but was one of the smallest in terms of officers, with about 715 officers. The Constabulary was one of those amalgamated to form Police Scotland in 2013.

Politics of the Highland council area

The politics of the Highland council area in Scotland are evident in the deliberations and decisions of the Highland Council, in elections to the council, and in elections to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster) and the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). In the European Parliament the area was within the Scotland constituency, which covers all of the 32 council areas of Scotland.

A local enterprise company (LEC) is a public-sector organisation in Scotland with responsibility for local economic development activities. The LECs form part of the two enterprise networks, Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

Highlands and Islands (European Parliament constituency) Constituency of the European Parliament

Prior to its uniform adoption of proportional representation in 1999, the United Kingdom used first-past-the-post for the European elections in England, Scotland and Wales. The European Parliament constituencies used under that system were smaller than the later regional constituencies and only had one Member of the European Parliament each.

Caithness, Sutherland and Ross (Scottish Parliament constituency) Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Caithness, Sutherland and Ross is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament covering the northern part of the Highland council area. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Inverness and Nairn (Scottish Parliament constituency) Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Inverness and Nairn is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the Highland council area. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch (Scottish Parliament constituency) Constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the Highland council area. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Elections to The Highland Council will be held on 5 May 2022 on the same day as the 31 other Scottish local government elections. The election will use the 21 wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with 73 councillors being elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members, using the STV electoral system.

References

  1. ↑ "Highlands and Islands Enterprise". Highlands and Islands Enterprise. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  2. ↑ "Highlands and Islands - Police".
  3. ↑ "Highland and Islands Division - Police Scotland". www.scotland.police.uk.
  4. ↑ "ZetTrans". ZetTrans. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  5. ↑ "HITRANS". HITRANS. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  6. ↑ "Key Statistics" (PDF).
  7. ↑ "Covid-19's £2.6bn hit to Highlands and Islands' economy". BBC News. 18 September 2020.
  8. ↑ "Unemployment rate soars across Highlands and Islands, report finds". The Oban Times. 8 October 2020.
  9. ↑ Unemployment up by 116 per cent in Inverness since the start of Covid as Highland Council aims to launch a jobs programme amid fears those out of work could treble by next spring
  10. ↑ "Scotland".
  11. ↑ "SNP holds and Lib Dem gain in Highlands and Islands". BBC News. 9 June 2017.
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