Orkney Islands Council

The Orkney Islands Council (Scottish Gaelic: Comhairle Eileanan Arcaibh), is the local authority for Orkney, Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes of the mid-1990s.

Orkney Islands Council
Flag
Type
Type
Structure
Seats21
Political groups
Administration
  Independent (17)
Other parties
  Orkney Manifesto Group (2)
  Scottish Greens (2)
Length of term
Full council elected every 5 years
Elections
Single transferable vote
Last election
4 May 2017
Next election
2022
Website
www.orkney.gov.uk

It provides services in the areas of Environmental Health, Roads, Social Work, Community Development, Organisational Development, Economic Development, Building Standards, Trading Standards, Housing, Waste, Education, Burial Grounds, Port and Harbours and others.[1] The council is allowed to collect Council Tax.

The council is also the harbour authority for Orkney and its Marine Services division manages the operation of the islands' 29 piers and harbours.[2]

Elections

Between 2012 and 2017 the council consisted of 21 members, all of whom were independent; they did not stand as representatives of a political party.[3]

These members are elected in the following wards:

  • East Mainland, South Ronaldsay and Burray (3 members)
  • Kirkwall East (4 members)
  • Kirkwall West and Orphir (4 members)
  • North Isles (3 members)
  • Stromness and South Isles (3 members)
  • West Mainland (4 members).

After the 2017 election there were 18 independents, 2 Orkney Manifesto Group (OMG) councillors and 1 Green councillor.[4] Of these, 18 councillors were actually elected; the remaining 3 were declared on the election day "as the result of the uncontested election in the Stromness and South Isles ward, where the number of candidates was equal to or less than the number of seats available".[5]

After the election, formerly independent councillor John Ross Scott (Kirkwall East) joined the Greens, raising the total number of Green councillors to two.

The 2017 election elected these members: Candidates elected to form the new Council alongside Rob Crichton, James Stockan and Magnus Thomson in the uncontested Stromness and South Isles ward are:

Kirkwall East ward - David Dawson, Steven Heddle, John Ross Scott, Gwenda Shearer.

Kirkwall West and Orphir - Sandy Cowie, Barbara Foulkes, Leslie Manson, John Richards.

West Mainland - Harvey Johnston, Rachael King, Owen Tierney, Duncan Allan Tullock.

East Mainland - South Ronaldsay and Burray - Norman Craigie, Andrew Drever, Steve Sankey.

North Isles - Stephen Clackson, Graham Sinclair, Kevin Woodbridge.[6]

Composition
Seat composition
Party 2017 Current
Independent 18 17
Orkney Manifesto Group 2 2
Scottish Greens 1 2

See also

References
  1. Council, orkney.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  2. Marine Services, orkneyharbours.com. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  3. "Social Work Inspection Agency: Performance Inspection Orkney Islands Council 2006. Chapter 2: Context." The Scottish Government. Retrieved 8 September 2009.
  4. "Orkney Islands Council : Election 2017 Results". BBC News. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  5. "Orkney's results declared for the 2017 Scottish Local Government elections". Orkney Islands Council. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  6. https://www.orkney.gov.uk/OIC-News/May-2017-SLGE-results.htm
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