Shetland Islands Council Comhairle Shealtainn | |
---|---|
Full council election every 5 years | |
Type | |
Type | |
History | |
Founded | 1975 |
Leadership | |
Maggie Sandison since 28 February 2018[1] | |
Structure | |
Seats | 23 councillors |
Political groups | Independent (20)
Greens (1)
SNP (1)
Labour (1) |
Elections | |
Single transferable vote | |
Last election | 5 May 2022 |
Next election | 6 May 2027 |
Motto | |
Með lögum skal land byggja (Old Norse: "By law shall the land be built up") | |
Meeting place | |
Council Chamber, Lower Hillhead, Lerwick, Shetland, ZE1 0EL | |
Website | |
www |
The Shetland Islands Council (Shetland Insular Scots: Shitlin Islant' Cooncil; Scottish Gaelic: Comhairle Shealtainn) is the local authority for Shetland, Scotland. It was established by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and is the successor to the former Lerwick Town Council and Zetland County Council. This council was established in 1975 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes of the mid-1990s.
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. The council is allowed to collect Council Tax. The Fire Service is part of the Highlands and Islands division of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
In 2011, structural reforms saw the creation of the Political Leader position, with the Convener becoming a civic leadership post.[3]