Getting Krystle clear on life's priorities
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AS with the rest of society, the Covid-19 lockdown has brought with it many changes and challenges for elected representatives at all levels.
Constituency offices shut their doors in response to the measures to strangle the spread of the coronavirus, reduce the impact on the NHS’s critical care facilities and, ultimately, save lives up and down the land.
Video conferencing via the Zoom app has become the new normal as MPs and MSPs work from home.
In last week’s Advertiser, we looked at how the lockdown and working from home was affecting Moray MP Douglas Ross, who is also the under secretary of state for Scotland.
This week we turn the spotlight on how this has impacted on his wife Krystle and their one-year-old son Alistair.
While Mr Ross may be the one often in the news, Mrs Ross is a key worker in her own right, serving the community as a police sergeant based in Moray.
She has recently returned to her frontline police role after a year away from work on maternity leave, with the young lad spending some quality time with dad as he deals with affairs of state via video link and email.
She said: “I’ve enjoyed my year off but it’s good to get back to work with the police.
“I have to engage with adults again regularly, which is good!
“Alistair’s too young at the moment to really understand what’s going on. We both do wonder if not being able to get out and play is bothering him.”
In common with many youngsters across the country, Alistair has not seen his grandparents – who live nearby the family’s Alves home – due to the rule governing self-isolation, although thanks to Facetime he has at least been able to see them over a video link.
The Covid-19 crisis is just the latest upheaval to hit the household, although the previous two major events – Mr Ross’s election as an MSP in 2016 after having served as a Moray councillor and then as Moray’s MP the following year – were firmly her husband’s doing.
“During the time Douglas was on the council he was at home a lot more often and I saw more of him, even with me working shifts,” Mrs Ross continued.
“When he was elected as an MSP he was away a lot more, it was a transition you just have to get used to, you adapt.
“I had to adapt again when he was elected as an MP, I saw even less of him. I also heard less from him, too as he was busier, sometimes it was only a couple of texts a day depending what he was doing.
“Obviously, since he became under secretary he’s busier still. There are times when Scotland office business means he’s working locally but it often takes up his entire day.
“One of the other big differences between being an MSP and an MP is that it was easier to nip down to Edinburgh to see him. London isn’t quite so easy, especially with a one-year-old, but Alistair is a very good traveller.
“This wasn’t so much of a problem when I was on maternity leave but we’ll see how it all goes when things get back to normal.”
While being a politician’s better half is not the easiest of paths to tread at times, Mrs Ross said she would not swap it.
“I’m very proud of Douglas, he’s worked really hard to get where he is. I want to be beside him and support him, especially in these challenging times.”
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