Council convener 'fighting on' after unpaid tax controversy

The convener of Shetland Islands Council has said she hopes to "fight on" and "clear her name" after being banned as a company director last month over unpaid tax. It has prompted a call for Andrea Manson to resign from her ceremonial role. Her jointly-owned pub company, Mid Brae Inn Limited, owed HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at least £178,860 when it went into liquidation in May 2023. Manson said she had been "complacent" but insisted the business had been a casualty of the Covid pandemic. She said the company had offered to pay "a significant amount" of the money it owed. Speaking to BBC Radio Shetland, Manson said she had planned to resign as convener but received "overwhelming" messages of support. In February, the Insolvency Service, a UK government agency, said her firm paid £6,000 to HMRC between 2019 and 2023, despite continuing to trade and more than £800,000 having been paid into its bank account. The 67-year-old said she was one of "many thousands of people" who had fallen on hard times. "I put too much trust in the fact that I was told everything was ticking along nicely. I should have checked", she said. On Monday, Shetland Central councillor Ian Scott called for her