THE impacts of Brexit on Orkney and the rest of Scotland, and how we keep the NHS alive and kicking at 75, will be the focus of activities for Yes Orkney in the coming weeks and months.
The local pro-independence group, which celebrated its 12th birthday in May, will hold an interactive stall in Kirkwall today, where members of the public – whether locals or visitors – will be invited to take part in a project to raise awareness of what has been lost to Orkney because of Brexit, and also how Orkney has benefitted from 75 years of the NHS in Scotland.
There will be interactive whiteboards where folk can rate different Brexit losses and NHS benefits with stickers. Ideas around how we overcome the Brexit issues and maintain Scotland’s health service will be up for debate.
Yes Orkney will also kick off an EU logo competition, where the public are being invited to look out for the EU flag on buildings and infrastructure projects across the islands, which benefited significantly over the years from European Regional Development Fund grants.
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Last year it was estimated that Orkney had lost out on around £620,000 as UK Government replacement funds fell short of replacing EU funding. Yes Orkney would like folk to photograph the EU signs and either print or digitally send them in to Yes Orkney on or before Saturday, August 12, with details of where they saw it and what project it was supporting.
We will then display them as part of a large collage on the Yes Orkney stand at Orkney’s main agricultural event of the summer, the county show. There will be a fitting prize for the winner who can come up with the most examples of EU logos and their locations around Orkney.
Yes Orkney is also keenly aware that Orkney is a significant producer of electricity from renewable generation – mainly onshore wind but also some marine energy and solar PV. In fact, Orkney has generated more electricity annually than it can use for several years now.
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And yet, due to rocketing electricity prices – Orkney has no mains gas – we have around the highest fuel poverty figures in the country, with more households than ever struggling to keep the heat on and cook hot meals.
For that reason, Yes Orkney feels that speaking about how an independent Scotland could have a fairer energy system that works for Scotland’s people – to bring bills down– and not just for shareholders will be a positive issue to highlight locally.
These tangible issues that affect the everyday lives of island residents will be to the fore as Yes Orkney ramps up activity to make the case for Orkney to be part of Scotland as a normal independent country.
For the EU flag competition, and indeed for anyone interested in joining Yes Orkney, the email address is yes.orkney@outlook.com
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