THE BBC has come under fire for presenting an arch-Unionist former Labour minister with an “axe to grind” against the SNP without revealing his party affiliation in a critical report about ferries.
Brian Wilson, a Scotland Office minister in Tony Blair’s government, was presented as a “former MP and Scottish Secretary” - though he never held that title - with no mention of his membership of the Unionist party or his involvement with anti-independence groups.
No campaigner Wilson (below), now the editor-at-large of the Stornoway Gazette, was invited by Good Morning Scotland on Friday to speak about controversial proposals to close the key ferry port Uig Harbour, on Skye.
Nearly 5000 people have signed a petition launched by Harris councillor Grant Fulton to postpone the closure, which is being considered to facilitate work to upgrade the drawbridge at the harbour.
The upgrade is necessary because one of the delayed CalMac ferries being built at the Ferguson Marine shipyard is planned for the route, which provides the only route from Harris to the mainland.
It will also have the knock-on effect of cancelling all services from Tarbet, because the boat on that route will be used for a lifeline link between Lochmaddy and Ullapool.
Wilson was deeply critical of the plans to close the vital route for half the year but the BBC has been criticised for presenting him with no mention of his party links.
He said: “This is a huge issue in the islands and until its recognised just how crazy this is, to close a pier to make way for work to make way for a ferry that doesn’t exist and isn’t going to exist for at least another 18 months makes no sort of sense at all.”
The BBC’s editorial guidelines state that its journalists “should not automatically assume that contributors from other organisations … are unbiased”.
It adds: “Appropriate information about their affiliations, funding and particular viewpoints should be made available to the audience, when relevant to the context."
The host closed Wilson’s contributions by identifying him only as being “from the Stornoway Gazette”.
The BBC failing to be “open” about Wilson’s Labour past or his pro-Union advocacy through Scottish Business UK drew the ire of Angus MacNeil (below), the SNP MP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar.
His constituents would be affected by the closure but said ferries now surpassed the service offered under Labour.
He said: “Brian Wilson's never been an impartial source, he's got a bucketful of chips on his shoulder.
"He's certainly got irons in the fire.
"The thing about the ferries the BBC always miss out whenever they talk about the ferries is you've got more ferries sailing more routes, more often, carrying more people at cheaper prices than when Labour were in power.
"It's not surprising they've got something on this that's not fully open, that's not fully that someone's got an axe to grind.
“I met with Grant Fulton and Highland Council officers today to discuss the situation with the potential closure of Uig Harbour.”
In 2007, the last full year of Labour’s time in power in Scotland, there were 27 CalMac routes carrying a total of 4.7 million passengers and 1m cars.
In 2019, the last year before the Covid pandemic brought the country to a standstill, CalMac was up to 28 routes, carrying a total of 5.7m passengers and 1.5m cars.
Na h-Eileanan an Iar MSP Alasdair Allan raised the issue at First Minister’s Questions on Thursday, asking whether a pause to plans to close the harbour would be considered given “that there are still a great many unknowns and unresolved issues”.
Nicola Sturgeon responded that the option of pausing was being considered but warned “it comes with considerable risks”.
The BBC was approached for comment.
