Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has today welcomed news that the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has recommended that fishing vessel deckhands be counted as “skilled workers” for the purposes of sponsorship under future immigration rules. The classification covers deckhands with three years’ experience, for fishing vessels over nine metres in length.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has welcomed today’s announcement that the UK government will approve the creation of a Shetland spaceport.

The Driving Vehicle and Standards Agency (DVSA) has responded to concerns raised by Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, about access to test bookings in the isles. A significant number of islanders have expressed frustration in recent weeks due to problems with the online booking system, which have now been resolved.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has condemned Boris Johnson’s “Brexit melodrama” after the Prime Minister said that the country must prepare for a no-deal exit from the transition period. The Prime Minister’s spokesperson later said that there was “no point” in EU negotiators coming to London for the next round of trade talks.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has reacted to progress on the Fisheries Bill in Parliament last night. While Mr Carmichael noted that flaws in the Bill remain, he recognised that the legislation represents long-overdue progress on fishing priorities as it passed its Third Reading.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has pushed the government to protect UK fishermen and afford maritime agencies greater jurisdiction in UK waters to ensure safety at sea. Mr Carmichael tabled two amendments to the Fisheries Bill, which would bridge the current gap in the law demonstrated by the Pesorsa Dos incident off Shetland this summer. The responding minister agreed to meet with Mr Carmichael and others to make progress on the concerns raised by local fishermen.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has called for the creation of a formal UN mission to investigate human rights abuses against the Uyghur Muslims in China. Mr Carmichael pointed to recent reports from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute and the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which shed more light on the Chinese government’s attempts to repress this ethnic minority group, through methods such as forced labour camps and sterilisation procedures.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has today warned that recent UNICEF and Ofcom figures on children’s access to digital learning demonstrates the continued need to end the divide between haves and have-nots. Highlighting estimates from Ofcom that up to 1.7 million children have no home access to a laptop, desktop or tablet, Mr Carmichael warned that this divide risked exacerbating educational challenges for those without ready connections to their school.

Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has challenged the government to accept an amendment to the Fisheries Bill and close the legal “gap” in safety at sea. In June a Shetland boat, the Alison Kay, was harassed by a Spanish vessel, the Pesorsa Dos, which attempted to cripple the Alison Kay’s propeller. Despite representations by Alistair Carmichael and the Shetland Fisherman’s Association to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the MCA was unable to take action as it has no jurisdiction outside of the 12-mile limit.

The government must change course and protect UK farming standards, said Orkney and Shetland MP Alistair Carmichael. Meeting with campaigners from Save British Farming today in Westminster, he stressed that a no-deal would inevitably lead to a decrease in exports following the UK’s departure from the EU, while risking a “double-whammy” of lowered standards in goods from the US. Last week Mr Carmichael challenged the International Trade Secretary Liz Truss to meet with the protestors.