Campbeltown Courier From Our Files 15.5.26

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO
Friday, May 18, 2001

Council gives planning boost to Vestas development

Wind turbine manufacturer Vestas came one step closer to providing jobs in Kintyre this week, after being awarded another permit needed to build a factory at Machrihanish.

The company already had consent to build the manufacturing unit, and proposals to amend the access route to it were passed on Monday.

Campbeltown Central Councillor Alastair McKinlay said: “This is an important step towards bringing this major development to fruition. It takes us over one of the last major hurdles towards seeing the development becoming a reality.”

Because there were no objections to the change of access proposals, council officials were able to process and pass the application quickly.

If there had been any representations following publication of the proposals, or objections from consultees, the decision would have been referred to members of the Mid Argyll, Kintyre and Islay Area Committee.

Councillor Alasdair Blair welcomed the speed with which the decision had been taken and added: “If it means that this will bring forward the provision of jobs in Campbeltown it can only be wonderful news.”

South Kintyre Councillor Baldy McCallum said that he was “delighted” at the news.

SIXTY YEARS AGO
Thursday, May 19, 1966

Islay air-lift

It has been BEA to the rescue with Islay’s daily bread during the first days of the seamen’s strike but Jura and Colonsay, with no airstrip, are having to go without.

More than 700 loaves from Glasgow’s Milanda bakery have been flown daily from Machrihanish to Port Ellen; the same quantity as would normally go to Islay by boat from West Loch Tarbert.

No mail or fresh food has been received on Jura or Colonsay since the weekend. Islanders are depending on the government’s promise that the Royal Navy will bring in supplies if the situation becomes serious.

North of Scotland Hydro Board officials were worried on Monday that they would run out of fuel oil for Islay’s diesel generators. If this had happened, thousands of gallons of whisky could have been ruined by loss of power at the island’s distilleries.

Then on Tuesday came news that a Belfast tanker, crewed by members of a fishermen’s union, was on its way to Port Ellen with 140 tons of oil; enough to maintain the island’s electricity supply for 10 to 14 days. 

Campbeltown and the rest of Kintyre is scarcely affected by the strike. The boats that bring coal and other cargoes to the peninsula are strictly non-union vessels.

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO
Saturday, May 15, 1926

General strike ends

The General Strike, on Tuesday of last week, after lasting nine days, was terminated yesterday with dramatic suddenness.

The first intimation in Campbeltown of the cessation of the stoppage came by wireless about 1.15pm. 

Listeners-in were hearing the customary one o’clock broadcast, when there was a pause, and the speaker intimated that important news had just come in.

The announcement that the strike was terminating at once took most people’s breath away, but nothing could have been more welcome and it was with a feeling of relief that everyone heard the news, which spread quickly. 

At four o’clock fuller details were given and were eagerly scanned when posted up in town.

It has been a time of stress and anxiety, and it is a relief to have it over, with constitutional government more firmly established in the saddle than ever.

The lack of newspapers was one of the unprecedented features of the strike, and up till Tuesday, when Glasgow’s ‘Emergency Press’ was received in town in very limited quantities, the inhabitants were dependent for information on the various phases of the situation on the wireless bulletins issued at intervals each day.

Realising how very important it was that the community should be kept informed of the march of events, the Town Council took steps to have bulletins posted up at six centres in the town, Dalintober and Millknowe, Provost Smith making arrangements with the ‘Courier’ to have a shorthand note of the bulletins taken and a very full summary typewritten and posted up.

Mr A P M’Grory gave every facility for this service by placing his very fine wireless service at the disposal of the reporter.

By this means not only was a very full digest of the news from all parts of the country posted up, but the speech of the Prime Minister on Friday night, and that of Viscount Grey of Fallodon on Sunday night, were exhibited next day practically verbatim, while pronouncements on the situation by various other public men on both sides were also conveyed to the public.