29 Jan 2026
Controversial Scottish government quango the Energy Consents Unit (ECU) has taken further steps to prevent local communities from raising concerns about wind farms, by cutting the length of submissions that can be made via its new portal.
The ECU has secretly put a limit of 37,000 characters on submissions to their online system – just over 6,000 words. There has been no announcement and no consultation with members of the public on the change.
Last week it emerged that it will no longer be possible to email the ECU – the most commonly used channel of communication. Only letters sent by post or online submissions via the portal will be allowed. Local authorities were informed of the change by Ivan McKee, Minister for Public Finance, with only 24 hours’ notice and there was no public announcement.
The new online system, which the Scottish government says will ‘make it easier for members of the public to submit representations on energy applications’ is currently out of order. None of the objections submitted by members of the public in the past week have appeared on the ECU portal and local residents have not received any acknowledgement that their comments are being registered. The matter is urgent since the deadline for objections to the Mid Hill wind farm, proposed for construction in the historic Borthwick Valley, is 31 January.
Rory Steel, chair of Lauderdale Preservation Group, said: “First they ban us from emailing them and now we’ve found out that documents over 37,000 characters are being rejected. This is woefully insufficient when you consider the length of applications submitted by the developers and what is needed to respond to them. We also don’t know whether previous submissions have been accepted or discarded.
“If that wasn’t bad enough, the new ‘modernised’ portal is completely out of action and not accepting comments of any length. We are being shut out, blocked and ignored. Will they say that no-one has objected to the next round of giant turbines, solar farms, battery storage sites and pylons? Lauderdale is being industrialised, totally against the wishes of ordinary people.”
The objection from the Lauderdale Preservation Group to an application at Glenburnie ran to over 60,000 characters so it would have been rejected under the new system. There were more than 90 objections to the Glenburnie development by local residents and community councils. The scheme has undergone significant design changes and a change in ownership since the initial application. It was controversially re-branded as Glenburnie following objections to the original proposal, submitted under the name ‘Longcroft’.
Sarah St Pierre of the Borthwickwater Landscape Conservation Group said: “These are major developments which have a huge impact in the local area. Wind turbines are often 200 metres in height – they are visible for miles around and are already scarring the landscape. We have to be able to respond in detail to a detailed application. It is totally unacceptable that we are being ignored by the ECU. The deadline for the next application is 31 January and we know people are trying to submit comments – but no-one has been able to do so.
“The behaviour of the ECU is extremely questionable, especially when the Mid Hill development is so controversial due to the sensitivity of the country’s nuclear defence. It is essential that the community’s voice is heard, especially as the MoD have already put in an objection to Mid Hill due to “the unmanageable impact the proposed wind farm would have on the operation of the Eskdalemuir Sesimology recording station”.”
The ECU has been under renewed scrutiny after it emerged that almost 50 energy developments have been pushed through against the wishes of local communities in Scotland since 2020.
The Midhill windfarm application by developer Invenergy, America’s largest private renewable energy company, seeks approval for 13 turbines up to 200 metres tall, along with an energy storage facility in the Borthwickwater Valley, a tranquil unspoilt area, known for its red squirrels and birdlife.
Onshore windfarms currently have 14.6GW of operational capacity in Scotland, far in excess of the current and future demand of 9.4GW in the winter and 7GW in the summer, by 2050, according to figures released by OFGEM. This figure includes demand from all homes and businesses.