European Union

Caithness Chamber of Commerce is starting off 2018 with a bang as it launches its brand new contract to host Scotland’s only Europe Direct Information Centre (EDIC). The aim of this Centre is to provide information to businesses and the general public about EU matters and to enable them to make their voices heard on any areas of EU activity that are of
concern to them.  

Starting from 1 January 2018, any members of the public in the North Highlands and Northern Isles who want to find out more about EU rights, funding, living, working, studying in EU countries, and much more, will be able to get easy access to the information they need.

As well as having a walk-in centre at the Chamber’s offices in Thurso, the EDIC will also have a dedicated phone number, email address and social media presence, and the team will also be doing information events throughout the year.

The Chamber team is already hard at work preparing for a range of events throughout 2018, with plans afoot to have a presence at a variety of County Shows throughout the region, as well as a special event being planned in conjunction with North Highland College UHI to take place on Europe Day (9 May 2018).

Trudy Morris, Chief Executive of Caithness Chamber of Commerce, said: “The bidding process for this contract was highly competitive, and we were one of just 12 successful bids out of a total of 35 from organisations across the UK, so this is a real coup for the North Highlands, being the only one awarded in Scotland.

“The new contract for EDICs runs from 2018 – 2020, but with the date of Brexit set as 29 March 2019, the contract is likely not to run beyond this. Therefore for this period, we will be hosting the only and in fact, the last EDIC in Scotland, so a historic first.

“As with our colleagues throughout the Scottish Chambers network, the Chamber remains neutral on the ongoing debates around Brexit and the EU, which makes us well-placed to ensure that businesses and individuals in the North Highlands and Islands have access to factual, unbiased information.

“The Brexit process has already brought up a number of complex issues which remain under discussion, and it is important that local citizens, businesses and organisations are able to have their key questions answered as soon as the information becomes available.

“We are excited to take on this new challenge, and we look forward to working hard over the coming year to ensure that everyone in the North Highlands and Northern Isles has the information they need to make informed decisions about Europe.”