On this day in 2023

Space Hub Sutherland was the first spaceport to gain planning permission in the UK. The site was earmarked for a launch control centre, launch pad, antenna farm and an assembly facility for rockets and their payloads prior to launch.

In its guide to UK spaceports, the UK government explained the appeal of the United Kingdom – and Scotland in particular – as a base from which to launch spaceflights:

Geographically advantageous, the UK’s long coastline and island location make it unique in easily hosting different types of launch services. Scotland is the best place in the UK to reach in-demand satellite orbits with vertically launched rockets. Spaceplanes and other space transportation can be launched at several aerodromes around the UK, each with their own individual geography and local infrastructure.

The Sutherland site on the A’Mhoine peninsula occupies around five hectares and is in a sparsely populated area that offers easy access to polar orbits. Looking towards the North Pole, it faces an unpopulated area of sea between the Faroe Islands, to the west, and Orkney and Shetland, to the east.

Polar orbits are particularly attractive for launching smaller satellites weighing just a few kilograms each. These satellites maintain a vertical orbit that takes them over both poles. The Earth rotates beneath them, which means they will be within range of every point on the planet’s surface several times a week. Such satellites are thus ideally suited for use in communications and observation missions.

Space investment in Scotland

The spaceport, which is designed to host up to 12 launches a year, was granted planning permission in 2020, and was backed by the Highlands and Islands Enterprise development agency and a grant from the UK Space Agency. It was widely reported that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority also contributed to the scheme in an effort to create jobs in the area in the wake of the closure of the Dounreay nuclear site close to Thurso.

Operator Orbex leased the site for 50 years, with an option to extend the lease for a further 25 years. Orbex has invested elsewhere in Scotland to support its space operations. Its corporate headquarters and one of its primary production facilities are at Forres, and its maintains a testing facility at Kinloss.

 

...and on this day in 2016

Scotland was ahead of the rest of the UK when, in the Scottish parliament election of 2016, it extended the right to vote to 16- and 17-year-olds. The change in the voting age had been made possible by the passing of the Scottish Elections (Reduction of Voting Age) Act 2015, which gained Royal Assent on 24 July 2015.

A vote on the vote

The vote to reduce the minimum age for casting a ballot had been passed unanimously in June 2015, one year after 16- and 17-year-olds had been allowed to cast a vote in the 2014 referendum on Scottish Independence. That age range had not been allowed to vote in the referendum on continued membership of the European Union, which had been managed on a UK-wide basis. In that instance, Scotland had expressed a clear preference for retaining membership, although a slim majority had voted for independence in the United Kingdom as a whole, leading to Scotland’s eventual forced withdrawal in 2020.

Strengthening Scottish devolution

The proposal to reduce the voting age had been included in the recommendations coming out of the Smith Commission, led by Lord Smith, that considered ways to strengthen Scottish devolution. It also recommended the Scottish Parliament should have the ability to set its own rates of income tax and to retain revenues raised by the tax, be given greater oversight of healthcare, and have a role in negotiations over the renewal of the BBC Charter, among other things.

The 2016 election was also notable for being the first in which each of the three largest parties were led by women: Nicola Sturgeon for the SNP, Kezia Dugdale for Labour and Ruth Davidson for the Conservatives. With 63 seats, the SNP retained its position as the largest party in the Scottish Parliament. Labour won 24 and the conservatives 31. The remaining eleven seats were split between the Scottish Greens, with six, and the Liberal Democrats, with five.