It is reported on local news website Hebrides News
that Comhairle nan Eilean Siar is considering whether the Sunday
closure of the Sports Centre in Stornoway does not constitute religious
discrimination. At the moment, all Council facilities in Lewis and
Harris are closed on Sunday, out of deference to the presbyterian
tradition in those islands. The only problem is that so many other
facilities and services, not Council operated, are open and working on
the Sunday. Planes have been flying in and out of Stornoway airport
since 2002, the Stornoway to Ullapool ferry runs on Sunday since July
2009, and so does the ferry between Harris and Berneray.
I don’t think it is necessary to resort to the discrimination aspect.
The policy has become inconsistent across the islands. It is not fair
to apply one rule in one part of the island chain and another somewhere
else. For reference, the Sunday crossing to and from Ullapool is the
busiest crossing of the week.
