Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Press Release
20 January 2009
Comhairle Sets Up Harris Tweed Investment Fund
An innovative pilot scheme set up by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar to boost the Harris Tweed industry and protect the employment of weavers is set to get underway.
The Harris Tweed Investment Fund (HTIF) will support production within the industry. It will finance the production of a fixed volume of the most popular tweed patterns during the off-peak production season. This will enable the mills to maintain production on a year-round basis and thereby reduce the problems associated with extreme seasonality, such as workforce retention and the attractiveness of the industry as a career option.
Comhairle Leader Cllr Angus Campbell said: “I am pleased that we have managed to get this initiative up and running and confident that this will provide a boost to the tweed industry and the wider economy of the Outer Hebrides. We have decided to proceed with the scheme for the opening months of 2009 as a pilot and we are hopeful that the Scottish Government and HIE will support the Comhairle in this scheme and come on board as it expands further.”
Lorna Macaulay, Chief Executive of the Harris Tweed Association, said: ‘The HTA are delighted to see the HT Investment Fund being launched. The fund is certainly an interesting and innovative approach to addressing an issue which has challenged the seasonal nature of the Harris Tweed industry for many years. It is particularly pleasing to have seen the Harris Tweed industry – the HTA, weavers and the mills working closely with public sector partners to shape what we hope is a practical measure to support weavers through this difficult period’
Mills interested in seeking investment from the HTIF must submit an application to the HTIF via the Comhairle by Friday 23rd January. The application requires the mills to specify the types of tweeds to be produced including pattern, colour, volume and number of beams, the production timescale and the cost of the order.
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Nigel Scott
Communications Officer
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Tel: 01851 822622 (Work)
Tel: 07884 236103 (Mobile)
email: nscott@cne-siar.gov.uk
Ruairidh Maciver
Communications Assistant
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Tel: 01851 822615 (Work)
Tel: 07881 774601 (Mobile)
email: ruairidh.maciver@cne-siar.gov.uk
