Galloway’s biggest public inquiry of recent times has come under fire for lack of access.
It had been expected the hearing into SP Energy Network’s plan to build pylons from Glenlee to Tongland would be live online.
But as proceedings got under way in the Arden House Hotel in Kirkcudbright it emerged that inquiry sessions would not be broadcast.
By contrast, council meetings are live streamed for public viewing as a matter of course.
The Kendoon-Tongland Reinforcement (KTR) project has attracted huge interest with almost 1,000 people lodging objections.
And Balmaghie Community Council convener Shirley Thomson, who will attend the inquiry on Monday to deliver her objection in person, slammed the lack of coverage.
She said: “Our community council can organise a Zoom meeting online. So why on earth can’t a big organisation like the DPEA [the Scottish Government’s planning and appeals division] get its act together over something as important as this?
“This is the biggest planning issue for years in our area and is something that affects so many people.
“Given that, surely the inquiry should be available for everybody to see?”
Mrs Thomson added: “A lot of people have put a lot of effort into making their objection.
“The vast majority of them I’m sure will be wanting to view the proceedings.
“Surely in this day and age they can get somebody to do it?
“Even if they had approached another body – it can’t be that difficult.
“It smacks of us being country bumpkins and we don’t really matter.”
Lead objectors, Galloway Without Pylons (GWP), were also unhappy the inquiry would be invisible to most – and called for a rethink.
Co-ordinator Paul Swift said: “We simply ask that if, when the inquiry switches on Monday to the new venue at Ernespie House Hotel in Castle Douglas, it would be possible to have proceedings webcast from then on in order that as many people as possible can follow the proceedings.”
The Scottish Government ordered the inquiry after Dumfries and Galloway Council objected to the overhead power line.
Councillors backed GWP’s call for the new line to be underground to minimise environmental damage.
The authority controversially withdrew its objection days before the inquiry started, citing legal reasons.
Tory councillors Pauline Drysdale and John Denerley have hit out at the decision.
Mrs Drysdale said: “I am dismayed that the council have taken this course of action, despite 950 objections from the public. This will be one of the largest engineering projects ever undertaken in Dumfries and Galloway and some sections of giant overhead pylons will, without doubt, adversely affect tourism, destroy areas of natural beauty and damage our forests, roads, wildlife and fauna.”
Mr Denerley added: “The impact this will have on a range of matters such as local tourism, the economy and particularly the rich environment and ecology is extremely concerning.”
The inquiry opened this week with arguments over the economic and technical justification for the project.
In a precognition statement, Scottish Power project development manager Diyar Kadar said: “The KTR Project is the most economic and efficient scheme to facilitate the needs of the network in Dumfries and Galloway with respect to replacing ageing assets, securing supplies to customers and providing much needed capacity.”
For GWP, technical expert Chris Ford stated: “SPEN has not shown technical and economic justification for KTR and the Tongland branch in particular ... there is no need for increased capacity downstream from Glenlee.”
More than 20 local people will read out their objections to the pylon plan at the inquiry on Monday.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Whilst DPEA endeavours to live stream all planning inquiries, it is not always possible to do so due to factors including availability of staff, cost, other inquiries happening at the same time and other business priorities.
“In this instance it was not possible to webcast the inquiry.
“The inquiry itself is, however, being held in public and anyone with an interest in this case is welcome to attend.”
