It was nearly 27 years ago that I won the Scottish Parliament constituency contest of Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber, to represent you.
I was fair chuffed, after nine years ‘nursing’ the seat.
But amongst the very first mail I received was this: “Dear Ewing”. Not an encouraging start.
It continued: “Today, I learn from the news that you have been elected as my MSP. That makes this the worst day of my life….”
It continued in a similar vein until the end, when it was signed off: “Yours inconsolably”.
But then came a surprising Post Script: “PS can you send a signed photograph?”
Was it a spoof or a reproof?
Things went uphill after that and no happier times were spent than in Badenoch and Strathspey, where over the years I got to know local people, many of whom have become friends. They also taught me more about the workings and running of the rural economy than any book, or university course could ever have done.
This will be the last column I write for The Strathy as your constituency MSP. Thanks to the Boundary Commissioners, Badenoch and Strathspey are now being lumped into a massive seat including Kinlochleven, Ardnamurchan, Skye and Dingwall.
This is absurd. Your new seat has 67000 voters and is around 60 or 70 times the area of the whole of Glasgow region which has eight constituency seats averaging just 57,000 voters. In correspondence, I asked the Scottish Government to intervene by arguing for an additional Highland seat, logically removing one from Glasgow which is clearly over represented.
They dismissed this out of hand. On May 7th, I stand to be re-elected, as an independent, for the neighbouring constituency of Inverness and Nairn.
Editor willing, I hope still to contribute to these pages from time to time. Sadly, over the years some local papers like the Nairnshire Telegraph have fallen by the wayside.
So, let us all continue to support The Strathy as THE source of local news. As the great singer Joni Mitchell sang in “Big Yellow Taxi”: ‘You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.’
Many thanks to Gav and all his team at the Strathy. And from me, Becca, Rosie and Dani, thanks to you the readers, whether you voted for me or not.
A9: the final chapter?
Dualling the A9, along with delivery of the Nairn by-pass will, if I am re-elected, remain my key priorities. I have a proposal which I will set out in the election campaign proper, about how we best avoid repetition of the slippage and delay.
It means all the main parties in the next Session of Parliament working together, putting aside party differences. We did this locally, for example in forcing the completion of the Grantown Health Centre refurbishment, so why not nationally?
I did previously bring together MSPs in a deputation to the FM, urging he bring forward the timetable so A9 dualling be completed before the revised target date of 2035. He refused. However, some recommendations from the Petitions Committee Investigation on the A9 were taken up:
To improve procurement terms risk sharing and to adopt framework contracts to speed things up.
These are two small but practical steps forward.
Despite the setbacks of the past, I am looking forward with optimism to the next five years when we can see, at last, more rapid progress.
Legend has it that It was only on the seventh attempt that Robert the Bruce’s spider successfully spun its web and inspired him to fight again.
Should I succeed, this would be my seventh victory. I cannot think of a finer precedent to emulate.
Fergus Ewing (Independent) is MSP for Inverness and Nairn (including Strathspey for now)
