Sutherland This Past Week: Council Cuts, Economic Opportunities and Questions About the Future

1st November 2026

Sutherland faces some difficult questions about its future. The latest developments include a substantial financial challenge for Highland Council, proposals for a new Highland Growth Deal and the continuing debate over how to attract investment and employment to rural communities.

But one issue overshadows many of the others. Sutherland, particularly its north-western communities, has been struggling with population decline, falling school rolls and a housing market that increasingly makes it difficult for local young people to find somewhere they can afford to live.

The recent rejection of the proposed Coul Links golf course has brought these problems into sharper focus.

Highland Council faces another £39.2 million savings challenge

Highland Council announced on 29 October that it needs to find an additional £39.2 million in savings over the next three years to balance its finances.

This comes on top of £32.8 million of savings and other budget measures already identified for 2027/28 and 2028/29.

The council intends to consult residents, community organisations, businesses and young people before making its decisions. The consultation will include a budget simulator, surveys and opportunities for community groups to contribute.

For Sutherland, the concern is how these savings will affect communities that already have limited access to services.

Rural roads, schools, social care, libraries and community facilities are particularly important in an area where distances are considerable and alternative services are often many miles away.

There is also a question about whether savings calculated across the whole Highland Council area properly recognise the additional costs of delivering services in sparsely populated communities.

The consultation is an opportunity for Sutherland residents to make their voices heard, although experience suggests that relatively few people take part in these exercises.

A new Highland Growth Deal: Will Sutherland benefit?

Highland Council has also backed the development of a new Highland Growth Deal, intended to attract investment and support economic development across the region.

The proposals build on existing work involving Invest Highland, the Highland Investment Programme and the proposed Highland Wealth Fund.

The principle is welcome, but the important question for Sutherland is what will actually be delivered.

Inverness has a much larger population, established business infrastructure and considerable influence over regional investment decisions. There is a danger that smaller and more remote communities will again find themselves towards the back of the queue.

Sutherland needs investment that produces lasting employment, supports local businesses and gives younger people a reason to remain in the area.

Projects that create employment only during construction are useful, but they do not necessarily solve the longer-term problems facing rural communities.

A growth strategy needs to recognise that population retention is just as important as attracting new investment.

Coul Links: A major opportunity lost?

The Scottish Government's decision on 21 October to refuse planning permission for the proposed championship golf course at Coul Links, near Embo, has provoked considerable disappointment among supporters of the development.

Highland Council had previously approved the application, but Scottish Ministers ultimately decided that the environmental damage identified by the planning process outweighed the economic benefits.

The proposed development was expected to attract around £50 million of investment. Its supporters argued that it could generate between 270 and 400 full-time equivalent jobs and contribute approximately £12 million annually to the local economy.

There were also proposals for habitat restoration and financial benefits for the local community.

These were forecasts rather than guaranteed outcomes, but they represented a potentially significant investment in an area that needs employment and economic opportunities.

The Scottish Government's position is that the development would cause unacceptable harm to nationally and internationally important natural heritage interests, including the Loch Fleet Site of Special Scientific Interest and Ramsar site.

Those environmental concerns should not be dismissed. Protecting important habitats is a legitimate responsibility, and tourism itself depends partly on maintaining the natural environment.

However, the decision raises an important question.

If a community facing population decline cannot secure major private investment because of environmental objections, what alternative opportunities are being offered?

This is not simply an argument about one golf course. It is about the future economic direction of Sutherland.

David Green MSP raised the issue in the Scottish Parliament on 27 October, highlighting the proposed jobs and economic contribution and asking what the Scottish Government intended to offer as an alternative.

The Deputy First Minister defended the decision on environmental grounds, while acknowledging that the development would have delivered tourism benefits.

Both arguments deserve consideration, but the economic consequences cannot simply be ignored.

Depopulation: The problem that will not go away

Perhaps the greatest challenge facing Sutherland is its declining population.

The problem is particularly serious in the north-west, where communities have experienced falling school rolls, the loss of facilities and a shrinking working-age population.

Earlier demographic projections prepared for Highland Council suggested that Sutherland could experience a population decline of around 15% between 2018 and 2040.

The consequences are already visible in some communities.

Fewer children mean smaller school rolls. Smaller schools become more expensive to maintain on a per-pupil basis, increasing pressure on education budgets. If schools close, families may become less willing to remain in the area or move there.

This creates a damaging cycle.

The north-west has previously seen warnings about the future of schools such as Kinlochbervie, where the number of pupils has been particularly low.

These are not simply educational statistics. A local school is often central to the identity and survival of a rural community.

Once it disappears, attracting young families becomes considerably harder.

Housing: Why are young local people being priced out?

Housing is another part of the problem.

Sutherland has an unusual housing market. It attracts people from outside the area, including those seeking retirement properties, second homes and holiday accommodation.

That brings money into the local economy, but it can also create difficulties for people who already live and work there.

A Highland Council assessment presented to the Sutherland County Committee found that average house prices in Sutherland increased by 34% between 2019 and 2024. This was the largest increase among Highland's housing market areas.

The same assessment found that Sutherland had a higher proportion of house sales to buyers from outside Highland, Scotland and the UK than other parts of the region.

It also highlighted the number of properties being used as short-term lets, second homes or remaining empty.

In 2025, the council began considering whether a Short Term Let Control Area should be introduced in Sutherland, particularly in response to housing pressures in the north-west.

The problem is straightforward.

A young couple earning local wages may find it impossible to compete with buyers arriving from elsewhere with considerably greater purchasing power.

Even when houses become available, the prices can put them beyond the reach of local people.

The consequences extend beyond individual households. If young people cannot buy or rent locally, they may move away. If they move away, schools lose pupils, businesses lose potential employees and communities gradually lose their vitality.

Tourism and second-home ownership bring economic benefits, but those benefits need to be balanced against the needs of permanent residents.

What happens next?

Sutherland does not lack natural resources, attractive landscapes or potential investment opportunities.

It has tourism, renewable energy, marine opportunities, agriculture, space-related ambitions and considerable potential for businesses that can operate remotely.

But these opportunities need to be translated into permanent employment, affordable housing and improved services.

The Coul Links decision has highlighted the tension between environmental protection and economic development. Neither should automatically take precedence in every circumstance, but decisions need to recognise the long-term consequences for the communities involved.

There is little point in celebrating the protection of a landscape if the communities surrounding it gradually lose the people needed to sustain them. Equally, development that damages irreplaceable natural assets may undermine another important part of the local economy.

The challenge is finding a sensible balance.

Highland Council's new Growth Deal discussions, its housing policies and the forthcoming budget consultation all provide opportunities to address these problems.

But Sutherland needs more than another collection of strategies and consultations.

It needs a practical plan to make it possible for young people to remain, for families to find affordable homes, for businesses to employ local people and for communities to retain their schools and essential services.

The real measure of success should not be how many development plans are announced, or how many consultations are completed. It should be whether Sutherland still has thriving communities in which the next generation can afford to live and work.