THE new Scottish Government is under pressure to confirm that it will reject plans to build a golf course on a protected Highland beach after documents revealed that ministers had been privately advised to block the development.
As The National reported on Tuesday, files released under Freedom of Information laws revealed that officials recommended that SNP ministers refuse consent for proposals for an 18-hole course at Coul Links, in Dornoch, which if approved will be built by US billionaire Mike Keiser.
The report containing the recommendation was given to ministers in August 2025. However, no action was taken until January 2026, when an email containing a redacted ministerial decision was sent to officials.
That decision was apparently revealed in March 2026 in a letter to stakeholders published on the government’s official planning portal. It stated: “The Scottish Ministers consider that submission of further ecological information would assist in determining the application.”
As such, there is not yet any decision on whether to allow the development of a golf course at Coul Links, which is a triple-protected dune system, and no timeline for the “further ecological information” to be provided.
Proposals to develop Coul Links have already been the focus of two separate public inquiries, with the Scottish Government ultimately rejecting the first iteration of the plans in 2020.
During the Scottish parliament election campaign, First Minister John Swinney pledged to speed up the planning system, saying that the “government's got to be swift in its decision-making”.
Ariane Burgess, a Green MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said that Swinney’s government must “now give local people the clarity they deserve and publicly confirm that it intends to reject the application once and for all”.
“This new Government must show that from day one that it’s on the side of the people and nature of Scotland – not the whims of billionaires who want to turn our nation into a playground for the wealthy,” Burgess went on.
“Over the three years since Highland Council approved the controversial golf course plan, it’s been clear that it would be in breach of the wishes of local people, Scotland’s planning laws, and its nature targets.”
The Green MSP added: “Last summer, the Scottish Government updated its Ramsar policy, making it clear that these designated special areas for nature should be a material consideration in planning decisions.
“Should the Government abide by [its] own laws and throw out this application, it will rightly ensure future developments in similar special areas will have to face the highest planning hurdles.”
Coul Links forms part of the Loch Fleet Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the Dornoch Firth and Loch Fleet Special Protection Area (SPA), and the Dornoch Firth and Loch Fleet Ramsar site – meaning it is protected under the 1971 international Convention on Wetlands.
In July 2025, the SNP Government changed their policy on developments affecting Ramsar Sites, which forced a delay in the consideration of the proposals for Coul Links.
The new policy means that a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) must take place for any developments affecting Ramsar sites. Government agency NatureScot says that a HRA must show “beyond reasonable scientific doubt” that a project “will not adversely affect the integrity” of a Ramsar site, or it must not be allowed to go ahead.
NatureScot later conducted a “shadow HRA” which concluded that the development would “undermine” conservation objectives, adding: “Development management response type: outright objection”.
Communities for Coul (C4C), the developers behind the proposal, have claimed that the revised golf course plans would be net-positive for the Ramsar site.
The developers have claimed the course would contribute between 270-400 full-time jobs and would generate between £8-12 million per year to the economy.
C4C is a grassroots group which took over bidding for approval for the plans after the initial proposal from US billionaire Keiser was rejected. He is still due to step in to fund the development should it be green-lit.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “As this is a live planning application, it would not be appropriate to comment, and the decision will be announced in due course.”
