Island parliamentarians stand behind ‘no nonessential travel to the isles’ message

Only essential travel to the isles the right message, according to parliamentary representatives from Orkney and Shetland.

Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael and Shetland MSP Beatrice Wishart have joined Orkney MSP Liam McArthur in supporting the message put out by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, yesterday, Thursday, warning Scottish mainland resident against travelling to Scotland’s island groups — unless it is absolutely essential.

Mr Carmichael said: “As we move towards relaxing some of the lockdown restrictions in Scotland, we must ensure that common sense is used to ensure we do not reintroduce COVID-19 into island communities.

“Local people and businesses will be happy to welcome people back to the isles in the future, but for the time being we must protect the vulnerable and only make essential travel.

“Now is the time for the Scottish and UK governments to commit to a long-term support plan for areas reliant on tourism, so that we can lock down safely, and recover quickly.”