The result of the General Election could literally be up in the air.
The Western Isles Council has hired a plane to deliver the votes from the islands of Barra, Vatesay, Eriskay and the Uists to the central count more than 100 miles away in Stornoway.
The votes from the southern isles will be delivered by road – and in the case of Barra, first by boat – to Benbecula where the aircraft will then fly on to Stornoway on Lewis.
With a close UK result predicted, it is hoped the decision to hire a plane – only the second time the council has done so – will ensure the result being declared around 1.30am.
It means the votes from the Outer Hebrides can be declared hours earlier – and around the same time as the other Scottish island groups like Orkney and Shetland.
Western Isles Council spokesman Nigel Scott said the cost of the special charter – believed to be less than £10,000 – was “the price of democracy.”
The cost is recoverable as an election expense from central funds.
The council first used a plane to bring in the votes for the September’s Scottish Referendum but it previously had two rather different experiences of using a helicopter.
In 2005 taxpayers paid £18,000 to hire a helicopter to collect votes in the Outer Hebrides for the UK General Election.
But two years later at the Scottish Parliamentary elections, the result was not declared until Friday lunchtime after the helicopter was grounded by fog.
At various elections since, the council has relied on road and ferry to gather in the islands’ 23,000 votes. That will remain a back-up plan if the plane is grounded by weather or technical issues.
“We have chosen a plane. It was a matter of cost, a plane being much cheaper than a helicopter,” said Mr Scott. “It means we will be able to declare our result around 1.30am – weather permitting.”
Meanwhile Britain’s remotest voters on St Kilda – 112 miles off the north west Scottish mainland – have been given postal votes.