Politics: It's important to hear the challenges being faced first hand
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It’s always great to get out and about to enjoy the various events Banff and Buchan has to offer throughout the Summer.
This Summer has been particularly special with many such events being cancelled in recent years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Of course, the highlight event in this area is Turriff Show – including a visit this year from Her Royal Highness, Princess Anne.
I was delighted also to welcome UK Government Minister for Farming, Fisheries and Food, Victoria Prentis MP on her first visit to the Show – the largest two day event in Scotland.
Being a livestock farmer herself, Victoria was really impressed by the grand parade of champions around the main arena.
It was also a great opportunity for the Minister to hear first-hand some of the challenges being faced by local farmers.
In a panel event organised by the North East Branch of NFU Scotland, the Minister and I addressed such concerns in a frank and open discussion.
It was unfortunate that local SNP politicians chose to use the presence of the UK Minister as a political point scoring exercise, sometimes not even relating to questions being asked.
What our farmers and food producers in Banff and Buchan, and across Scotland, want to see is both of their governments working together on the real issues, in real time – not going over old political debates.
On Monday this week, I hosted a public meeting at The Baden Powell Centre in Turriff to discuss various healthcare concerns affecting the area.
The main issues discussed were; access to local/primary health care; minor injury unity (casualty) availability and ambulance provision.
It was disappointing that none of the health care provision organisations I invited – Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership (AHSCP), Scottish Ambulance Service and Turriff Medical Practice – were not able to send someone to take part in the discussion.
My intention remains, as it was before the meeting, to facilitate a constructive dialogue between the local community and the various health service providers – and I hope they will choose to engage on that basis.
I would like to thank every one of the over 150 local residents who made the time to attend the event and for their active participation and valuable input.
I would also like to thank the custodians of the Baden Powell Centre for the use of the hall (and to all who helped with the rapid deployment of extra chairs before the meeting started!).
Further afield, over in Fraserburgh there was great news after a heart breaking loss to the local community from last year’s Storm Arwen and one of Banff and Buchan’s best tourist attractions, the Lighthouse Museum suffered major structural damage, not least in losing its roof, but also the irreparable damage to the heritage collection which was stored within.
After a length process and calls by myself and fellow Conservative politicians and local volunteers at the museum for the insurance process to be speeded up I am pleased to say that progress is being made after planning permission was approved to change the original design to now incorporate a pitched roof.
I look forward to actual repairs being progressing by Aberdeenshire Council as soon as possible.
