Allan speaks at Carloway public meeting on oil rig grounding

He was joined by Inspector Roddie MacKay from Police Scotland and local councillor ‘Cudig’ MacLeod.

Alasdair Allan commented: “I would like to thank Carloway Community Association for organising this event and giving the community the chance to express their views. There was a clear strength of feeling on show from Carloway residents tonight, as was evident from the packed hall.

“While more information should hopefully be available over the coming days, this was a useful opportunity to discuss the impact of the oil rig grounding to the community and the possible ways forward.

“A number of people whose businesses have been directly impacted by the incident were represented and I have taken up the issue of compensation with the company.

“Many of the questions raised, including on whether the rig can be floated, will need to be answered by Transocean and the salvagers themselves.

“While we are all grateful that there were no casualties from this incident, it has starkly illustrated just how dangerous our seas can be.

“The decision to scrap the Stornoway-based Emergency Towing Vessel was an act of gross irresponsibility from the UK Government.

“The Department of Transport should reinstate this to ensure similar incidents can never happen again.”