THE Scottish government has refused to intervene to save a green space in one Scotland’s most deprived areas.

Campaigners have been waging a battle to save St Fittick’s Park after a controversial decision by Aberdeen City Council to rezone the area for industrial development as an Energy Transition Zone (ETZ) three years ago.

Bolstered by the support of regional Labour MSP Mercedes Villalba and Green’s Maggie Chapman, residents have demanded planning minister Joe Fitzpatrick uses his powers to intervene on the city’s new masterplan and have the ETZ relocated.

After postponing the decision five times, Mr Fitzpartick has chosen not to intervene, arousing anger from locals who have vowed to take direct action if necessary to stop development.

Campaigner and local resident Simon McClean said: “St Fittick’s Park is a thriving, award-winning greenspace, with incredible biodiversity.

“It’s located in one of the most economically deprived areas in Scotland, and it delivers on all the policy outcomes that the Scottish government claims to be world leader.

“Instead, the government has decided to support private interests such as Aberdeen Harbour and the unaccountable companies One and ETZ Ltd — headed up by oil millionaire Ian Wood — to allow the concreting over a vast swathe of the park in the name of a just green transition.

“This is not a transition, this is a robbery of our park, our green space and public land by the rich.”

Mr Fitzpatrick said that while campaigners understand the strength of community feeling in relation to the ETZ designation, he added that he had “not considered it necessary to direct Aberdeen City Council to make any further modifications to that part of the plan.”