Dave Thompson MSP

FOR the second time this year I have had the pleasure of welcoming the Scottish Government to the Highlands.

In July the Scottish Cabinet met in Fort William then this month the SNP held its largest ever Conference at Eden Court in Inverness, attended by 76 parliamentarians, 363 councillors and over 1,200 party members.

Interest following May’s Holyrood landslide was such that over 150 journalists from all over the world also came to learn about this shift in Scottish politics. They wanted to hear more about the strategy the SNP is pursuing to help the economy by boosting capital spending despite swingeing cuts imposed by Westminster, where the coalition Government’s crippling diet of cuts is increasingly being blamed for leading Britain into a sustained period of zero growth.

Conference was also an opportunity for the party to thank the Scottish electorate for putting their trust in the SNP to govern for the benefit of Scotland.

Among the many Conference announcements was one that stood out as far as the wider Highland economy is concerned; the renaissance of the former oil construction yard at Nigg as the Nigg Energy Park, where the current workforce of two should grow to 2,000 by 2015 by becoming a base for both the oil and renewable industries.

Although outwith my constituency, the Nigg yard is extremely important for my constituents and I am glad that our Highland lobbying paid off with a significant £1.8 million Scottish government contribution. I am sure that Roy MacGregor and his team at Global will work hard to ensure that it is a great success and I wish them all the very best for the future.

Away from Conference, I was delighted when Richard Lochhead, the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, agreed to accompany me to Tore where the Scottish Ploughing Championships were being held on land generously made available by the Gammie and Paul families at Croftcrunie. The weather was kind to us and we enjoyed a welcome couple of hours with the farming community away from the hustle and bustle of Eden Court.

It was absolutely fascinating to watch as the different types of ploughing, from single drill horse drawn to eight drill super machines, turned the soil and I wish the Scottish winner, Andrew Mitchell Snr, well in the world championships.

While his promises to reduce the cost of fuel in the Highlands helped to persuade many to elect Danny Alexander as their MP, a year after he became Chief Secretary to the Treasury and gained the power to deliver his pledge, he has failed to provide more than a pilot reduction for island motorists, the introduction of which is still some time away. Every step is welcome but this one risks the survival of West Highland petrol stations which will see a drop in trade if motorists bypass their premises to fill up in Skye, where the reduction is to be introduced.

This is about more than the loss of a petrol pump from remote communities but also the additional services each provides to their surrounding areas and the jobs they support. So I wrote to Danny Alexander to suggest that he limit this potential by including rural mainland businesses which could experience an adverse effect from his ill-though-out policy but sadly his response was to say no change was possible.

I have recently also submitted a motion to the Scottish Parliament congratulating Dingwall Gaelic Choir on the group’s latest national award. It is the second time the wave of success from this choir has prompted me to submit a Parliamentary motion to congratulate the members and their inspirational conductor Kirsteen Menzies but this one was prompted by the fact that they have just won the coveted Lovat and Tullibardine Shield, the highest accolade for choral singing in Gaelic, for the third time in the past four years. Long may their success continue.