The Rev Dr Rory MacLeod said that two new settlements in the Highlands taking 100,000 refugees each would help tackle the region’s depopulation problems.

The Scotsman reports that Rev MacLeod, who was an army chaplain for over six years, said the surge would bring “an injection of youth and talent - to our denuded wilderness, while the hills would again ring with industry and culture, albeit of an exotic kind”.

The Kirk minister took over the Strath and Sleat congregation on Skye two years ago, having previously led Holy Trinity Church in St Andrews.

Writing in a letter to the Church’s house magazine, Life And Work, he wrote: “Two items from the news today caught my eye: a resurgence in migrants attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing from North Africa to Europe and the slack nature of the Scottish economy.

“At our Bible study the other evening we were discussing how we might respond to the refugee crisis.

“Someone came up with a suggestion that would address both issues: that two new towns of 100,000 residents each should be created in the northwest Highlands, which refugees from the Middle East and North Africa should be invited to occupy.”