WILL ORKNEY BREAK FROM SCOTLAND?

Councillors in the Orkney Islands are considering a Brexit-style break from the UK after being “failed dreadfully” by the governments in Edinburgh and London.

At a council meeting in July, council members, frustrated at the poor level of funding coming its way, voted 15 to six to explore ‘alternative modes of government’. Among different options being explored is the idea of returning to Norway, which ruled the islands until 1472 when they came to Scotland as part of the dowry of Margaret of Denmark, wife of King James III.

The leader of the Orkney Islands Council, James Stockan, told the BBC: “We were part of the Norse kingdom for much longer than we were part of the United Kingdom.

“On the street in Orkney people come up and say to me, when are we going to pay back the dowry, when are we going back to Norway?

“There is a huge affinity and a deep cultural relationship there. This is exactly the moment to explore what is possible.”

The council will also look closer at other Crown Dependencies, such as the Channel Islands to see how they are run.