| Shetland Islands Council | |
| Native Name: | Comhairle Shealtainn |
| Legislature: | Full council election every 5 years |
| Coa Pic: | Coat of arms of Shetland.png |
| Coa Caption: | Coat of arms |
| Logo Pic: | Shetland Islands Council logo.svg |
| Logo Res: | 250px |
| Foundation: | 1975 |
| House Type: | Unitary authority |
| Leader1 Type: | Convener |
| Leader1: | Andrea Manson |
| Party1: | Independent |
| Election1: | 23 May 2022 |
| Leader2 Type: | Leader |
| Leader2: | Emma MacDonald |
| Party2: | Independent |
| Election2: | 23 May 2022 |
| Leader3 Type: | Chief Executive |
| Leader3: | Maggie Sandison |
| Election3: | 28 February 2018[1] |
| Seats: | 23 councillors |
| Structure1 Alt: | Shetland Islands Council composition |
| Voting System1: | Single transferable vote |
| Last Election1: | 5 May 2022 |
| Next Election1: | 6 May 2027 |
| Meeting Place: | Council Chamber, Lower Hillhead, Lerwick, Shetland, ZE10EL |
| Session Room: | Lerwick Library, formerly S. Ringan's United Free Church - geograph.org.uk - 890427.jpg |
| Motto: | Með lögum skal land byggja (Old Norse: "By law shall the land be built up") |
The Shetland Islands Council (Shetland Insular Scots: Shitlin Islant' Cooncil; Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Comhairle Shealtainn) is the local authority for Shetland, Scotland. It was established by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and is the successor to the former Lerwick Town Council and Zetland County Council. This council was established in 1975 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes of the mid-1990s.
It provides services in the areas of Environmental Health, Roads, Social Work, Community Development, Organisational Development, Economic Development, Building Standards, Trading Standards, Housing, Waste, Education, Burial Grounds, Port and Harbours and others. The council is allowed to collect Council Tax. The Fire Service is part of the Highlands and Islands division of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
In 2011, structural reforms saw the creation of the Political Leader position, with the Convener becoming a civic leadership post.[2]
As of 2022 the council has the following councillors:
| Party | Seats | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | align=right | 20 | |
| Scottish Green Party | align=right | 1 | |
| Scottish National Party | align=right | 1 | |
| Scottish Labour Party | align=right | 1 | |
| 1 | Josie Simpson | Independent | 2011 - 2012 | 2007 | |||
| 2 | Gary Robinson | Independent | 2012 - 2017 | 2012 | Billy Fox (Independent) Michael Stout (Independent) | ||
| 3 | Cecil Smith | Independent | 2017 - 2018 | 2017 | Steven Coutts (Independent) | ||
| 4 | Steven Coutts | Independent | 2018–2022 | 2017 | Emma Macdonald (Independent) | ||
| 5 | Emma Macdonald | Independent | 2022–present | 2022 | Gary Robinson (Independent) | ||
| 1 | A.I. Tulloch | Independent | 1974 - 1986 | 1974 1978 1982 | John Jamieson (Independent) John Butler (Labour) Edward Thomason (Independent) | |||
| 2 | Edward Thomason | Shetland Movement | 1986 - 1994 | 1986 1990 | Willie Tait (Independent) William Anderson (Shetland Movement) | |||
| 3 | Lewis Shand Smith | Independent | 1994 - 1999 | 1994 | James Smith (Shetland Movement) | |||
| 4 | Tom Stove | Independent | 1999 - 2003 | 1999 | John Nicolson (Liberal Democrat) | |||
| 5 | Sandy Cluness | Liberal Democrat Independent | 2003 - 2012 | 2003 2007 | Florence Grains (Independent) Josie Simpson (Independent) | |||
| 6 | Malcolm Bell | Independent | 2012–2022 | 2012 2017 | Gary Robinson (Independent) Cecil Smith (Independent) Beatrice Wishart (Independent) Cecil Smith (Independent) | |||
| 7 | Andrea Manson | Independent | 2022–present | 2022 | Bryan Peterson (Independent) |
Council meetings are held at the Council Chamber on Lower Hillhead in Lerwick. The building was formerly St Ringan's Church and was built in 1886. After the church closed the building was used as a library for some years, before being converted to become the council chamber in 2022. Council meetings were previously held at Lerwick Town Hall.[4]
The council's main offices are at 8 North Ness in Lerwick, overlooking the harbour. The building was completed in 2012 to bring together the council's departments in one building.[5]