Northern Scot takes its airbase campaign to Downing St

Weekly newspaper The Northern Scot has taken its campaign against the closure of a local airbase to Downing Street.

Eighteen local campaigners, including editor Mike Collins, made the 1,160-mile round trip from Moray, in north east Scotland, to hand-deliver a petition containing over 31,000 signatures protesting against the planned closure of RAF Lossiemouth.

RAF Lossiemouth has been ear-marked for closure as part of the Government’s defence review.

After delivering their petition campaigners spent the remainder of the day at Westminster telling MPs about the importance of the base to the local economy.

The RAF has already indicated that it is to close neighbouring base RAF Kinloss and loss of Lossiemouth, campaigners say, would deal the local area a significant blow.

Together RAF Kinloss and RAF Lossiemouth employ 5,700 local people and pump £160m into the local economy.

The future of the air base will be determined with publication of the findings of the Government’s defence review either late in February or in early March.