FORTY-FIVE affordable homes are set to be built in Westhill as work begins on a £10m development, including flats and terraced houses. The Peregrine House site, formerly the headquarters of Stewart Milne Group, has stood empty since the housebuilder went into receivership in January 2024. Figures from Aberdeenshire Council show 250 families are currently waiting for social housing in Westhill.

Banff and Macduff residents have been invited by Aberdeenshire Council to attend engagement sessions which will present the design for a proposed active travel bridge across the River Deveron.

ABERDEENSHIRE Council is seeking informal feedback from residents regarding a proposed active travel bridge across the River Deveron. Those from Banff and Macduff have been invited to attend sessions which shows a design for the bridge, which would be a part of Aberdeenshire Council's integrated travel town masterplan. Sessions will be held at Banff Castle on 9 October at 10am-4pm and 10 October 10am-1pm.

Families at Tarland School in Aberdeenshire have issued an open letter calling for the appointment to be reconsidered.

Jack Middleton said he had written to the King with regards to the payment for both Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

Jack Middleton said he had written to the King with regards to the payment for both Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

SNP MSP Jack Middleton has written to King Charles requesting confirmation on whether he will pay significantly increased council tax on two royal residences in Scotland. The Aberdeen Central representative said he contacted the monarch "in good faith" regarding Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. ### Aberdeenshire Council imposed a 200% premium on second homes at the beginning of September, effectively tripling the standard council tax rate for affected property owners. Edinburgh City Council is set to go further still, with a 300% premium on second properties. ### ### TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say The policy enabling councils to levy these higher charges was designed to tackle Scotland's "housing emergency" by boosting housing availability and ensuring homes are used as primary residences rather than for occasional stays, according to Mr Middleton. In his letter to the King, Mr Middleton spelt out the practical consequences for each residence. He wrote: "From September 1 2026, Aberdeenshire Council has introduced a 200% council tax premium on second homes. “This means that Balmoral Castle, one of your multiple homes away from your permanent residence at Clarence House, should be charged three times the standard rate of council tax." ### ### Regarding the capital, the MSP added: "On top of this, The City of Edinburgh Council will introduce a 300% Council Tax premium on second homes. “Holyroodhouse should therefore soon be charged four times the standard rate." Mr Middleton told the monarch he would be "hugely grateful" for confirmation that the elevated rates were being applied to both properties. The MSP also raised the Scottish Government's proposed "mansion tax" in his correspondence. ### ### Under the plans, two additional council tax bands would be established for properties valued above £1 million. Mr Middleton noted that Balmoral is estimated to be worth approximately £50 million, whilst Holyroodhouse carries a valuation "closer to £60 million," placing both firmly within the scope of any such reform. A public consultation on the proposals closed on August 24, and Mr Middleton asked Charles whether he had "had the opportunity to contribute to the consultation" before that deadline. The combined effect of the second home premiums and the potential mansion tax could see the Crown facing substantially higher bills for maintaining its Scottish residences. ### **Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**

ABERDEENSHIRE Council has listed two of its sites for sale, with properties in Fraserburgh and Inverurie now on the market. A former Iceberg fishing processing factory in Fraserburgh's South Harbour Road is on sale at offers over £430,000, meanwhile the former Harlaw Day Centre three acre site is available in Inverurie. The two buildings join Aberdeenshire Council's list of vacant sites…

A PATH which will improve links for the Peterhead community has officially been opened by Aberdeenshire Council. The Collieburn path provides a link to Formartine and Buchan Way for local neighbourhoods which was previously missing. Funding for the path was secured with a bid of £190,000 made to Transport Scotland's Active Travel Infrastructure Fund alongside £25,000 from the Coastal Communities Buchan Fund.

Reform UK may be celebrating every council seat it wins, but this week has exposed a rather less comfortable reality for Nigel Farage’s party: winning councillors is one thing. Keeping them is another. Four Reform councillors have walked away in an extraordinarily short period, with departures in Solihull, Wakefield, North East Lincolnshire and Aberdeenshire. And […] The post Swathe of Reform UK Councillors Lost This Week appeared first on Dorset Eye.