WHEN he was piped off his private jet on to a red carpet on his visit to Scotland two years ago, billionaire developer Donald Trump would have been forgiven for thinking his scheme for the country was in the bag.
Two years later, the plan to build a £1 billion golf-course development on a spectacular stretch of dunes at the Menie Estate near Aberdeen is mired in the planning process with no sign of an ending. And this weekend, as Trump's temper boils over, s
enior business leaders are agreeing with the flamboyant entrepreneur that Scotland's reputation as a place to invest is on the line.
Fears that Trump will pull the plug on the development are rising after he launched a stinging attack on the nation's planning process, claiming that it sends the message that Scotland is closed for business. He also claimed he already knew of businesses that had withdrawn from Scotland because of the lengthy time it took to get planning approval.
But there are also those that believe Trump has overstepped the mark with his criticism and that he should allow the plans to take their natural course.
One source at Scottish Enterprise said Trump's claims were well wide of the mark and there was no evidence to suggest inward investment was suffering. And a member of Sustainable Aberdeenshire, a pressure group lobbying to halt the Trump development, said the tycoon was speaking "nonsense" and accused him of attempting to "bully" his way to success.
Trump launched his latest threat to abandon his £1 billion golf-resort development after the government ordered a public inquiry into his plans to build Scotland's largest ever golf, leisure and housing-development resort on an environmentally sensitive stretch of Aberdeenshire coastline.
It means it could now be the end of the year at the earliest before Trump finally learns the fate of his plans, and he admitted he was "losing spirit" as result of the delay in reaching a resolution of the planning process.
He said: "I am committed to it for now. If the process takes too long, I'll really have no choice but to go someplace else. I don't mind the public hearing, in fact I think it's a positive thing as long as it can go quickly. But if it doesn't go fairly quickly, it just doesn't make sense to hang in."
Mr Trump said he was surprised that a project which enjoyed " a great public support" had to endure such a long planning process. He added: "I have one of the most popular developments in Scotland and yet we can't seem to get it approved. The sad part is, it is telling people not to invest in Scotland."
Asked whether it was already putting companies off investing in the country, he replied he knew of "investors that aren't going to Scotland because of it". But he refused to give specific details of any companies.
He also criticised the planning process. "It is too long," he claimed. "The process is too long and too unwieldy. If a change of the planning system comes of this, it will be a good thing."
His comments were echoed last night by George Sorial, the Trump executive in charge of the Menie project. He said: "Our commitment to the project is unwavering and we are mindful and respectful of the process, and if it has to be dragged out a few more months I think we are willing to do it."
Questioned about the potential impact the continuing delay could have on inward investment, he explained: "Any real- estate developer, whether they are in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, or Asia, will be watching what goes on in Scotland very carefully.
"Obviously, a developer like Mr Trump having the issues that we have now is a clear indication for developers that that's what they can expect in Scotland."
Trump's call for changes in the planning process was backed by Ian Armstrong, the North-east manager of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI). He said: "In terms of the tools we've got in our box in Scotland to attract investment, the delays in the planning system are clearly a major concern. I don't think it helps."
Aberdeenshire Council's December decision to reject the plan, he said, had clearly "reverberated" around the world because of the publicity that the Trump name attracted in the global media. Mr Armstrong added: "I don't think that has done Scotland any favours in terms of how we are perceived as an investment location."
Geoff Runcie, the chief executive of Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, claimed there was not even a need for the application to go to a full inquiry. He declared:
"By any measure, this inquiry is not good for Scotland. But for me, I guess the positive side is that there is a real opportunity to demonstrate that even a public inquiry can be handled efficiently and timeously to deliver an early outcome."
Sources within the government's enterprise network, however, told The Scotsman that there was no evidence to suggest potential investors were pulling out or delaying projects because of the planning process. One source said: "Scotland remains a fantastic investment opportunity and we are working with a number of organisations keen to establish themselves here."
Stuart Housden, the director of RSPB Scotland – a major opponent of the Menie plans – claimed the current planning system worked for the vast majority of developers. He said: "Most developers do not have massive problems with their plans. But if developers expect that, instantly, everyone should roll over to suit them then they are going to be disappointed.
"All this stuff about Mr Trump going to Northern Ireland (to build a resort] is bluster. If he went there, he would have to go through a planning system even more convoluted than ours.
"His (way of doing developments appears to me to be, 'I decide what I want and everyone rolls over and agrees with me – or else'. And investors are not being driven away. There have been lots of other much less flamboyant figures who are coming to Scotland and investing here and getting approvals."
Mickey Foote, spokesman for Sustainable Aberdeenshire, was also critical of Trump's comments. He said: "Trump has no respect for due process. He's full of nonsense. He has taken a blustering, bumbling, bullying approach to this development."
PAISLEY JNR TO MEET TRUMP OFFICIALSA NORTHERN Ireland politician is to meet Donald Trump's officials next month after uncertainty over the future of his plans for a luxury golf resort in Scotland.
Just days after he stepped down as a junior minister in the Stormont power sharing executive, Democratic Unionist Assembly member Ian Paisley Junior revealed his plan to travel to New York to meet with the Trump organisation.
The North Antrim MLA, whose father the Rev Ian Paisley met Donald Trump in New York last December as Stormont First Minister, confirmed he had spoken to a senior executive after Mr Trump expressed disappointment that a public inquiry was ordered into the £1 billion golf resort in Aberdeenshire.
Mr Paisley said: "I have spoken with the senior executive of the Trump organisation in New York and I've expressed to him my concern that their plans for development in Scotland have been set back by a public inquiry.
"I assured him that Northern Ireland is still an area open for business and would welcome representatives of the Trump organisation including Donald Trump at the Northern Ireland/USA investment conference in May.
"I intend to meet with Donald Trump and his team of executives later next month in New York and to be updated on the projects they are currently considering after the visit of the senior executives to Northern Ireland earlier this year."
Mr Paisley Jnr stressed that he was not trying to snatch the £1 billion investment from Scotland and George Sorial, a top Trump organisation aide, said it was not a case of one of the other.
He said: "It's been widely reported that it's either one or the other. That is not how we view things.
"Our plans for Scotland have to do with Scotland and our plans for Northern Ireland have to do with Northern Ireland, they are two different projects."
The full article contains 1388 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
