Comhairle Provides Update on Emergency Support Fund

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar has today confirmed that officers are working up the applications and payment process for the Emergency Support Fund announced yesterday.

Calum Iain Maciver, Director for Communities, confirmed that the aim is to have the “easiest and quickest process in place by the end of this week” in order to allow relevant organisations to avoid red tape in the application process and to ensure the Comhairle can rapidly issue the funds once agreed.

Comhairle Leader, Roddie MacKay, praised the speedy response in preparing the user friendly process and said he was “looking forward to seeing the funds being deployed as soon as possible to help support some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in our communities”

Cllr MacKay also thanked his fellow councillors in Lewis and Harris for their speedy and positive response to the request for supporting funds: “Having met and agreed a way forward with SSE on Thursday I wrote to all members in the Lewis and Harris to see if they would support this by diverting some funds from the Crown Estate income this year; and by Monday they had all responded positively and agreed that this was indeed a deserving cause and an urgent need.

“I would like to acknowledge their commitment and support in these very challenging times.”

Full details will be issued by the end of this week and Comhairle officers are already collating details from the various charitable organisations who have been hit hardest by the loss of income generated from the turbines affected.