Peterhead Prison

The Government's motion in the Scots Parliament on Violent and Sexual Offenders was an occasion that saw the kind of debate that the public say they want.

The issues were presented, points were picked up and developed from speaker to speaker. And the SNP presented no amendment to the Labour-Liberal motion. Only the Tories spoilt that party mood, and then only slightly, by tabling their own amendment. In the end they supported the government.

For me it presented the opportunity to make a speech about Peterhead Prison. Sixty-seven members of Parliament had supported Alex Salmond's motion in January which congratulated the Prison on their pioneering, and world-class, work with sex offenders. This was the time to build on that and to ask the government to end the uncertainty about Peterhead's future. I got warm words of support from the Minister which praised the Prison's work. But we'll have to wait another six months before we can be sure that it has a future.

And during this measured and useful debate there were how many journalists present? One! They only seem to want report disagreements. When we're all pulling in the same direction and doing our bit with common purpose, they're not interested in telling the public about the good things we do.

A Modern Transport System

Scottish Enterprise Grampian presented an update for local MSPs on a "Modern Transport System" for the North-East. For me it was more of introduction. And I found it rather depressing.

We are a one car family with no prospect of ever becoming a no car family. The reasons are entirely practical and financial. To get a bus from my Whitehills home the three miles into Banff is a £1.40 journey and the frequency is not that great. I contrast that with the Bridge of Don Park & Ride which I hear about at the seminar. It allows a family of four to park their car on the outskirts of Aberdeen, take a 5-mile trip to the centre of the city and back, for £1.60. The rate per mile is about one-eighth of my journey. No wonder I usually chose to spend about 25 pence on petrol for our car rather than take the bus to Banff.

And when I travel to Parliament in Edinburgh it's little better. I catch the 6.17 a.m. train from Huntly, about 20 miles from Whitehills. That gets me there by about 10.45. Yes I'm relaxed and I've been working on the train. But there's no public transport, other than an expensive taxi ride, to get me to Huntly at that time in the morning and the trains are only every two hours.

But for a young man in rural Banffshire things are much worse. He needs a wheelchair to get around. And he gets a free bus pass because of it. But his disability means that he can't lift his wheelchair onto his local bus. And the driver is not allowed to under Health & Safety regulations. Therefore this young man has to use taxis.

We might have a strategy for Aberdeen. With a little help from Scotland's Euro 2008 bid we might get a Western Peripheral Route round the city which we'd all welcome. But at grass roots level, we've still a lot to do.

Mintlaw School Visit

The second last day before the recess was my fifth day in Parliament and saw my first visit by constituents. A group of Mintlaw Academy pupils and their teacher have arrived to see what we do.

I suspect they weren't all that impressed to find that I start my day like many office workers by clearing the overnight emails. Unlike Westminster, every MSP is hooked into a Parliamentary computer system that brings day by day news of what's going on. And which connects us to the outside world of constituents, special interest groups and others with an interest in our work.

But they've chosen quite good day to be here. The Education Minister will be making a statement on the Scottish Qualifications Authority, the SQA. And our school students are keenly interested in seeing the whites of the Minister's eyes when he talks. Things have got better - could they have got worse? - and I get to ask my question. But by that time it's late and my visitors no longer sit in the gallery.

Earlier my visitors found it more impressive. Grampian TV arrive unexpectedly at my desk to ask if they can film a response from me on a probable expansion of Grampian Country Foods in Banff. For a new member this is manna from heaven. For my visitors it seems surprising that four minutes later the TV crew have gone having filmed my answers to three questions and taken shots of me at my desk. And it makes North Tonight's lead story. Good news for Banff.

Working with the media is fun but the real work is in the chamber, on the phone and on the keyboard.

Surgeries - Broadband

One of the key expectations constituents have of their MSPs is that they be accessible. And indeed the Scots Parliament's code of conduct for members require that we be so.

My first round of surgeries threw up a mixed bag of personal problems, administrative failures by various parties and one strategic shortfall in the constituency. We ain't got broadband communications.

Now, every so often a new "buzz-word" becomes "hot". An example would be WAP phones. The mobile phone operators have been pushing these like mad so they can boost their profits. And like so many new "techie" things it is falling out of favour as fast as it rose. The technology ain't much good.

Broadband is different. Small businesses in our area struggle to break out of their local area because we are further from our markets than many of our competitors. A visitor to one of my surgeries delivers training throughout the world over the Internet. But without broadband connections they're paying too much and getting poor service compared to companies in our cities.

So what can an MSP do to help? The answer turns out to be relatively simple. A letter from a member of parliament asking for information can work wonders. And in a day or two we discover a broadband cable running through the constituency - but without local connections. The Chairman of the Post Office says all their offices are going online to broadband and there are plans to install the technology in schools.

So all we need to do is bring all this together, generate enough demand from local business and we can be part of the new "wired world". That's my next step.

School Holidays

Communities all over have celebrated the Millenium in their own way. In Whitehills we have a compass rose set in the ground to show us the way North.

Sandhaven has a box. It's filled with things that matter today and will, they hope, intrigue people in a hundred years' time. And the end of year assembly at the Primary School is where it is officially closed.

When I was at school, I always thought the holidays were the best part. Today's Sandhaven pupils seem genuinely attached to their school and each class in turn puts on a wee show for the visitors.

The one that affects me most is when the senior pupils who will be leaving for the Academy tell us of their memories of school. It brings back a time in 1952 when my father's car had to follow the snow-plough to get me to my first day at school. And what is more precious in life than memories? Thank you Sandhaven for bringing back one of mine.

And Parliament's off for the Summer too

After only three weeks in Parliament it seems hard to remember a period before. And my "end of term" review? Well I've managed two speeches, two interventions, one oral question and a contribution to a committee. And outside Parliament, meetings galore, three surgeries and a mountain of correspondence.

The next eight weeks are an opportunity to visit people in some of our smaller villages and towns. I need to do some research as I expect to be appointed to Parliament's Rural Development Committee. There's two years of meetings to catch on. And Sandra tells me she wants a break. Two weeks on the West Coast will be our first real holiday for three years. We're looking forward to it.

The New Boy

By 10 p.m. on the Friday when the by-election result was declared, a car had arrived at my door with my first papers from the Scottish Parliament. Impressive, but what might have been even better would have been an email. The car probably cost £100 to send from Edinburgh to Whitehills but an email would have cost nearly nothing.

On Tuesday, I walked over the threshold of Parliament HQ to be greeted by two large security gentlemen who already recognised me. The Chief Whip, an old friend is waiting too, and she wants to make sure that I know what’s happening in my first week. By the end of the day, my case is bulging with paper.

But on Wednesday I take the oath and become a fully fledged member of parliament. And within minutes the chamber is resounding to vigorous debate on Stage 3 of the Housing Bill. 202 amendments tabled and a ten hour day in prospect. My first day is the parliament’s longest so far.

But Thursday has to be the highlight of my first week. There’s a debate on the European Committee’s review of the Common Fishing Policy and my name’s on the speakers’ list. With the Committee deciding to support ‘Zonal Management’ we’ve seen an encouraging change of view. For some time, we’ve been in favour of the countries near the fishing grounds looking after them rather than ‘the one size fits all’ approach of the CFP. Our local fishing industry appears greatly encouraged that both European Parliament and Scottish Parliament now support our view that we should manage our own fish stocks.

But we still need a tie-up scheme to protect the haddocks in particular and my question on the subject draws a predictably negative response from Fisheries Minister Rhona Brankin and I quote, “Following hard on the heels of Mr Salmond ..”. I think she meant that I’m representing the fishing community’s views just as effectively as Alex has always done. High praise indeed.

Bravery

There are occasions when the sea reminds us who’s in charge. The discovery of the Trident, lost in 1974, by some amateur divers is a sombre event. But my very first constituency appointment is to celebrate and recognise a much happier outcome.

At the Fishermens’ Mission in Peterhead, John Duncan is to receive a certificate from the Royal Humane Society for the saving the life of his fellow crewman. It’s a big occasion with the Lord Lieutenant there to read the citation and make the presentation. Few of us who make our living on dry land can imagine conditions in northern waters on 4th January this year. And yet I suspect that John Duncan found giving his speech of thanks a more intimidating experience that diving overboard to rescue his colleague. From the dedication and courage of such men is the North-East hewn. Men of granite.

Networking

One of the essentials in the Scottish Parliament is working with members of other parties for a common cause. The SNP leader, John Swinney, received an award last year, jointly with Labour’s Henry McLeish for working together on the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee.

My networking with colleagues from other parties got off to a good start. On my first day I was able to attend a briefing for the Rural Affairs Committee on fish conservation developments, courtesy of the Liberal Convenor. And both Labour and Conservative members have spoken to me in support of retaining Peterhead Prison in its present form. While Denis Canavan, the independent member for Falkirk East and Robin Harper, the Green congratulated me on my maiden speech.

The surprise has been how many of the members I’ve never heard of. It’s clear the majority of members work hard and try to co-operate with others. But there’s a worrying few, who seem to be along for the ride.

Rosehearty

If you want to know what’s going on in a community, ask a Councillor. That’s a maxim that stood me well during the election and it’s clear that it applies equally as a member of Parliament.

The Rosehearty AFC are working hard to raise the money for a new pavilion. Wherever one goes, a pretty constant refrain form youngsters is that there’s ‘nothing to do’. Well I’m prepared to do my bit and open a coffee morning to help the Rosehearty community do something about that. And the contact for this? Councillor Mitchell Burnett.

But it turns out that the real visitor Rosehearty would like to see is Cathy Staff, the actress who plays Nora Battie in ‘Last of the Summer Wine’. Apparently she used to come with a touring rep company who played in the local Community Hall. And some of the people I meet actually played on stage with her. Can get her back they ask? I don’t know but we’ll certainly try!

School Buses

One of the good things about the Scottish Parliament is the Public Petitions Committee. Unlike Westminster it provides a home for petitions where they actually consider how to respond. It must be a success as they’ve dealt with over 300 so far.

On Tuesday, the indefatigable John Calder of Banff is presenting a petition on school buses. The Liberal Democrat Council have changed the rules and making many of children walk on dangerous roads or alternatively their parents have to pay about £4 per week for what was a previously free bus.

I know all about this as my home village of Whitehills is one of those affected. And as an adult I wouldn’t walk on the A98 to Banff. 30 to 40 ton lorries whistle by at speeds much more than the 5 ton 30 mph vehicles of 1947 when the rules were set.

The committee agreed that the rules for School Buses have to be looked at and refer the matter for consideration at the Parliament’s Education Committee. But the less happy news is that even more pupils will have to walk on dangerous roads or pay after the summer. Let’s hope the Education Committee can move rapidly.