ALEX SALMOND’s ALBA PARTY have backed a campaign to “Save Loch Lomond” pledging to oppose any plans to sell or lease Loch Lomond to private developers.
For the past few years Private Developer Flamingo Land has been attempting to buy the West Riverside site at Balloch, for controversial plans to build a holiday ‘resort’
However, it has recently been revealed that the Scottish Government plans to offer Flamingo Land a 125 year lease if proposals receive planning permission.
ALBA party have today backed the “Save Loch Lomond” Campaign Group and have pledged that as part of an independence “Supermajority” in the Scottish Parliament, ALBA MSPs would take Scottish Government agency Scottish Enterprise to task to ensure any plans to sell or lease Loch Lomond are blocked.
Chris McEleny, ALBA’s lead candidate on the West of Scotland Regional list, met today with campaigners to pledge that ALBA “would move mountains” before their MSPs allowed Loch Lomond to be sold off or given away on a centuries long lease to a holiday company.
McEleny was born just over one mile from the proposed development site. Pledging ALBA’s support to the battle to Save Loch Lomond he said:
“ Loch Lomond belongs to Scotland and to the world. It should not, and must not, be sold or leased to any private company which would then reduce access for the people of Scotland.
“ Loch Lomond is a national asset and is famous the world over. People come to visit it for its unparalleled beauty. If the River Clyde was once the industrial heart of Scotland, then Loch Lomond is the lungs of our nation.
“ ALBA stands beside those campaigning to Save Loch Lomond and we will do everything that it takes to ensure it stays in public hands in perpetuity. “
Well said Chris.
Let’s stop selling Scotland off.
I sincerely hope Scottish Enterprise, through Alba, can be pressurised not to get within a million miles of Loch Lomond, or any other Scottish heritage site or resource. Personally I think it’s a national scandal that this desecration – being pushed forward by stealth – is even being considered given the global importance of this location to Scots both at home and around the world.
Only in Nicola Sturgeon’s Scotland; a menace to this beautiful country and to its citizens, she needs to be thwarted before she does any further damage – and thank god Salmond’s on the scene again.
Very well said indeed Chris.
This has been a filthy affair. The 44 acres of land at Loch Lomond were to be sold for a secret but widely understood peppercorn sum of around £150,000.
Widely opposed by people across Scotland and beyond Scottish Enterprise nevertheless pushed on, and the century plus lease proposal is the latest attempt by the Scottish Government to assuage opposition to the transfer of iceberg nice land – which incidentally Scottish Enterprise tried to say was ‘ worthless ‘
Quite how the SG can now have unsigned missives previously concluded in the face of huge opposition one can only wonder. Of course with the now discredited ex finance minister and Scottish Enterprise colleagues having wined and dined at a luxury property developer jamboree in Cannes a few years back, the closeness to developers becomes clear. ( you don’t really expect ministers to go to luxury conferences in luxury hotels and dine with developers now do you ? )
Anyway, selling off Lick Lomond, or leasing it now for centuries to a private developer as it seems, shows that public opinion counts for little. Seems that there’s little that the current SNP government wouldn’t hive off to developers.
Good on Chris again.
Well said Chris . This has got to be stopped.
I would be interested to see if Sam Paton gives it a mention in her next stint on Broadcasting Scotland. She was an activist in the campaign and of course is a frequent guest, commentator, on BS’s 7 pm news program.
I was a paying subscriber to BS, but no longer, due to their blackout on Alba reporting. I expected better.
Yes it is purely an SNP Broadcaster and not exactly top drawer presenters.
As someone who lives within 500 metres from the site in Balloch I think we should wait to see what’s on the table before summarily dismissing this. This is not about “selling off Loch Lomond”. It’s about potential jobs in what is one of the most deprived places in Scotland. Many of the locals support development here and they must also be listened to. Chris McEleny should remember that it’s local people’s votes he is chasing.
99% of the opposition to this development is just knee jerk from people, many of whom really don’t know what they are talking about, people who have not looked at the plans nor did any research whatsoever. Most of the original petitioners who opposed it have never even been here. They were lured by emotive language and indeed lies about red squirrels, otters and ancient woodland.
This is not depriving people access to Loch Lomond. The original project plan had a border with Loch Lomond amounting to just 200 or 300 yards of a part of the loch shoreline already occupied by Loch Lomond Shores and some of this would still have been open to the public. For comparison this is much the same as that occupied by the Duck Bay Hotel and Marina. The Carrick Golf Course occupies around a mile and a half and the Loch Lomond Golf Course (for the very wealthy only) close to three miles. I don’t recall any opposition to them?
In conclusion I actually opposed the original project because of its scale and the limitations it would have imposed on access to the West bank of the River Leven (not Loch Lomond). On this basis I would much rather wait and see what is in the new proposal before jumping on any bandwagon with the tree huggers. Jobs are at stake here.
Fully understand the line of thinking that you espouse Bryan Weir.
Jobs, or the attraction of jobs is always a good play when someone or some group want to do something or get a hold of something. Flamingo land is a property developer, and as a property developer the interests of the Gordon Gibb family is to make money.
Loch Lomond is a National Park. It is supposed to be a national treasure. So why, and let us make no mistake about this, some 44 acres of publicly owned land going to be sold of for absolute peanuts.
One of Gibb’s representatives was asked in a public Council session why Flamingo Land had to own the land. And the answer was …..’ because that’s the way our business model works’
Of course that’s the way their business model works. Think 44 acres at £150,000 much of which become filled with glamming pods, fun rides, or whatever. Ten years later, model not working, apply for change of use, sell off land to property developer for say 300 to £350 houses and or flats, with a land value of say £80k to £100k a property and the £150k investment becomes worth around £30 million.
So much for the once public owned national park land.
But it is not just the Gordon Gibb Development empire that has its eyes on iconic Loch Lomond. Up at Tarbet, a consortium were wanting to build a luxury ‘ Bearsden on the Loch ‘ of luxury homes, and further up there is another proposal being considered.
And with all these super expensive golf courses now closing off the lower reaches of the loch, the high security fenced luxury marinas, the sprawling luxury hotel and chalet complexes, the potential wedding and function facility at Ross Priory, you do get a picture of Loch Lomond being a property developers paradise. It’s all about money, money, money for the big boys – but of course the clarion call is it’s all about jobs.
Band the jobs – well they all tend to be high quality minimum wages ones like facility cleaning, table waiting, etc.
So yes Bryan you say this is one of the most deprived areas in Scotland. Living 500 metres from the Development am I to take it that you are deprived. If so I am sorry for you. However, selling off public land for buttons to multi millionaire developers should help you escape your deprivation. Waiting tables and cleaning hotel rooms is a real route out of deprivation.
Me, I think Loch Lomond should be more than a property developers Klondike. And so do many many others.
Otherwise, I wish you well out of your deprivation Bryan.
Nice!