‘Insulting’ – MP writes to minister after Shetland missed from government map

MP Alistair Carmichael has called a UK government advertising campaign “insulting” after Shetland and Orkney were missed from a map of the UK.

Mr Carmichael has written to cabinet minister Steve Barclay to highlight the exclusion of the Northern Isles from the campaign, which is supposed to advertise the UK to international travellers.

The adverts, included in international airports, appear without Shetland but include the Isle of Man – which is not part of the UK.

In his letter, Mr Carmichael said Shetland’s exclusion was “a point of ongoing frustration for our communities”.

“We strongly believe that we are as much an integral part of this country as any other area.

“Northern Isles businesses and organisations have had remarkable success in recent years in developing world-leading marine renewables technologies, selling whisky and other spirits globally and producing outstanding food products for the world market.

“It would seem only reasonable that the isles should appear on UK marketing just as any other part of the UK.

“Indeed my colleague, former Shetland MSP Tavish Scott, campaigned successfully to ensure that no maps produced for the Scottish government would exclude the Northern Isles or relegate them to misleading locations on the map.”

Mr Carmichael raised the issue in the House of Commons last week, calling the omission “insulting”.

Leader of the house, Mark Spencer MP, said he would make sure those ministers responsible for the campaign were “aware of their faux pas”.