We said in a recent piece that the exciting spectrum of initiatives and opportunities that have now come together for Campbeltown and Kintyre would be a test of the people’s will to help themselves by gearing up to take advantage of them – or not.
It didn’t take long for the evidence to hit our desk. The sleeping giant that is this somehow emblematic Argyll town with its rural hinterland, is absolutely on the move.
As we have regularly featured, the Ministry of Defence has put up for sale RAF Machrihanish – the extensive and mysterious airbase a few miles west of the town, on the west coast of the Mull of Kintyre. The property was put on the market in March 2009, by Drivers Jonas on behalf of the MoD, asking for expressions of interest.
Increasing local concern about the possible consequences of the site being bought by a developer has led to the birth of Machrihanish Airbase Community Company (MACC – a good Scots-sounding acronym).
MACC has now successfully registered an interest in the airbase under the Scottish Land Reform Act. This confers a statutory right to buy upon any community showing, in a community-wide ballot, the required percentage of community-wide support for such an initiative.
The company was given overwhelming support for the idea of such a community right to buy (or ‘buy-out’) at a public meeting held in Campbeltown on 4th March 2009.
Since then MACC has gone ahead in making an application to the Scottish Government to register an interest in the airbase under the Land Reform Act. The Scottish Government finally accepted the application on 11th February 2010.
The next stage is waiting for the valuation to be made by the appointed valuer, after which a Community Ballot must be held within 4 weeks.
The ballot must conform to the Scottish Government’s requirement that over 50% of the electorate in the buy out bid area of Kintyre (PA28 6) must vote and, in order for the next stage of the buy-out process to go ahead, 50% of those who vote must vote in favour of the bid to buy the airbase.
MACC obviously hopes – and intends to do its utmost to ensure – that the community will turn out in force to support this important initiative.
Campbeltown will be on its mettle to equal or surpass the inspirational community support shown recently in the Isle of Bute. There, in the largest community ballot ever held in Scotland, the entire island was the constituency. The vote, over the required percentage of the electorate, produced a 94% positive support for the buy-out by the Bute Community Land Company of Rhubodach Forest.
If the MACC bid succeeds, it will allow the most important asset in Kintyre to be owned, developed and managed by the community for the benefit of the community.
In our view, this is unequivocally what Campbeltown needs – to reach a situation where it is in charge of a key resource to support and develop its own future – and to do that itself.
Nothing will be of greater enduring benefit for this important town – with a future on its horizon which can be very different from its past – than to take this sort of responsibility on its own shoulders, to rise to the challenge and to make it work.
If Campbeltown can do this – for itself – it will never be the same again. It will be strong, with an earned self-confidence and control of a resource that can be a multi-faceted foundation for growth in the local economy and for developed lifestyle opportunities for local residents – and their vital youth sector.
There are currently two community forest buy-out initiative on the go in Argyll – the first, Kilfinan Community Forest at Tighnabruaich/Kilfinan in Cowal; and the most recent (mentioned above), just across the Kyles of Bute, the Bute Community Land Company aiming to buy Rhubodach Forest.
Now we have this new and even more ambitious initiative in Kintyre – with a civilian airport, an airfield, the myth-bound Gaydon Hangar, accommodation and other assorted buildings and the Station HQ – on over 1,000 acres.
Through initiatives like this – and with communities seeking insights and guidance from fellow communities with relevant experience – Argyll, in its entirety, can haul itself up to the position its essential worth dictates it should hold.
It would be a quick dispatch for the historical picture of an area short on ambition. That’s already beginning to look like a perspective past its ‘sell by’ date.
Note: The Machrihanish Airbase Community Company AGM is this Friday (5th March) at 7.30pm in the Lorne and Lowland Church Hall.
The photograph above, of the Control Tower at Campbeltown Airport, is by copyright holder Patrick Mackie and is reproduced here under the Creative Commons licence.
even the local snp councillor is against the proposed buyout.
to suggest the proposal has overwhelming local support is wide of the mark. the meeting you refer to was poorly attended.
of those who seek to ‘run’ the buyout a number see personal advantage while others have never run any commercial concern in their lives.
to suggest those who oppose the proposed buyout are somehow backward looking , or fearties or dinasours or do not wish the best for the area is insulting and untrue .
machrihanish is far too important a resource to let fall in to the hands of an amateur clique of busy bodies with scarcely an ounce of business acumen or enough funds to but a loaf between them.
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Positive as ever kintyre1
Only too happy that you post on here and not the Kintyre Forum!
One question, did you attend the said meeting you refer to?
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yes ,i am told the meeting was held in a church hall because the organisers didn’t have funds to hire the victoria hall , – and they are hoping to buy an airbase!
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That’s the stuff, kintyre1. Widen the circle of your enemies.
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thats priceless coming from you when only 20% of the scottish population support your policy of separation.
where do you stand on the issue being discussed here ? do you support the local snp councillors opposition or are you waiting to see which way the wind is blowing ? perhaps you’ll need a mind mapping session before you can decide which way to jump
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Talking of Councillors, where is the local SNP Councillor these days? We never see him in Kintyre – what is he doing to earn his salary?? He seems to have no interest in local affairs anymore so how do you know he is against the buy out kintyre1?
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Is the SNP councillor the only councillor in Kintyre? That’s very odd. There are three or four councillors in all the other Argyll wards.
Actually the latest polls show those for and those against indpendence very similar in percentages and the same number again relaxed about it.
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The title claimed by poster kintyre56 is a sobering one.
The Glasgow Empire was well known as a testing groumnd for English comedians. At one time Mike & Bernie Winters, then at the peak of their TV celebrity had a week at The Empire. On their first night and at the end of the first half when the top billing appeared for the first time Mike had been on for about five minutes and he was certainly struggling, facing a glowering and silent auditorium. He made a frantic signal to the wings and on ambled the amiable Bernie with his prominent teeth and simpleton grin.
A loud voice from the Dress Circle was heard to declaim, ” Aw naw, there’s two of them!”
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Very funny! But we have gone off topic. To set the record straight there are 3 Councillors who are Councillors for the Machrihanish area – two of them are definitely on board and have publicly stated that they are in favour of the buy-out. The other who is the now the SNP Councillor appeared to be in favour of it 5 years ago and was in fact the instigator of a buy out group himself, but now appears to be against it – according to kintyre1. Could it be sour grapes??
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So the SNP does not run Argyll and Bute Council then? I thought you said it did.
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Argyll 1, the said SNP Councillor here, yer talkin rubbish, where do I say I am against a community buyout then?
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And in terms of work – how do you think the CHORD project came to Campbeltown then?
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John, Your not seriously going to claim credit for that? Didn’t the Council bring the project to all the major towns in Argyll? After a couple of years of spending thousand and thousand of pounds of tax payers money on consultant fees to see which town would have the best case didn’t the Council then just award money to each of the communities?
As far as I am concerned you only ever hear what the Councillors are doing prior to the election when letters drop through the letter boxes telling you how great they are and what wonderful work they have done. Wouldn’t it make sense for our Councillors to keep in touch during their ‘reign’? Not saying our elected officials are not working hard for the community, just seems the only time you hear of them is when their face appears in the Courier.
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Hughie, the original proposals were for 2 towns, and initial papers suggested that Helensburgh and Dunoon would be the towns. If I had not been member of the ruling group on the council and made the argument to extend the business planning process and bring in a proper method for identifying the benefit to all towns, Campbeltown would not have been included. But that’s history, and I wouldn’t have brought it up if Kintyre1 had not made an issue of my workload. As for the election; the election coming is on UK parliament issues, so what relevance would my activity have on the electorate of Argyll 7 Bute for it? I believe that people in Argyll are sophisticated enough to know what is relevant to Westminster and the fact that Allan Reid spends all his time talking about issues which are nothing to do with Westminster speaks volumes of his workload.
As for keeping in touch with local people, I am the only local councillor to have used the kintyre forum to deal with issues – http://www.kintyreforum.com/
and have my own facebook page –
Councillor Semples Facebook Casebook – http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=168869009687
Which you are welcome to join if you feel the need.
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That is interesting to know John and thanks for the update. Kind of thing most people are not aware of. My reference to the elections was not specifically to this years Election but to the local election – that is when you hear what councillors have been doing.
Will have a look at the links you have provided but I’m afraid I may have to get my son to help me with this facebook carry on.
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tell us councillor semple do you ,or do you not support the proposed community buyout of machrihanish airbase ?
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Kintyre 1, along with a group of local business people based in Campbeltown I set up a company a year before the current company to be ready to make a community bid for the DE Machrihanish. Some of these people are part of the existing group. However our aim was to work alongside potential bidders in a partnership approach to acquire the base and secure community benefit while letting the private sector take on the liabilities and development risk. However some of the employees at the base saw our interest as a threat and set up their own company – it was never our intention to be a threat to them so we let the company go. It was more important that the community was united in the event of a unwanted development. I met with the leaders of the current community group very early in its formation and advised them that, I thought it would be important to work with the local community in the Sound of Kintyre, Machrihanish Village and the Golf development at Machrihanish Dunes, which I believe they are now doing. I also said that I would support any business plan which was produced that would maximise sustainable employment in the area and protect the local environment. I am sure that the group are working on such and I will be happy to give my full support as soon as I see it meets these conditions. For a councillor responsible for the wellbeing of this community it would be irresponsible to give full support to any development without knowing what it did.
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I suppose this sort of reasoned and comprehensive response is the best way to deal with the disruptive efforts of kintyre1
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David, yourself and kintyre one are welcome to join my Facebook Case book, contribute to discussions and get updates on my activity. Think you have to have an account to see it though. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=168869009687
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thanks for the reply and the invitation , i may just do that ………………..
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Talking of Councillors, Councillor Semple, I see that you have had the post asking where the public money for the company you set up went removed – are you involved in operating this website? And where did the money go?
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Pingback: Argyll News: Machrihanish airbase community buyout goes to Mach 1: valuer visits :Argyll,Kintyre,MoD,Machrihanish Community Company, | For Argyll
Kintyre 56, sounds like sour grapes to me!
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I am glad that at the recent community meeting MACC agreed to give an assurance that they would evolve the community in the development of the business plan and if there were any serious concerns about the activities within it then the community would be able to vote on the plan. This is a big step in the right direction for securing a yes vote
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