Columns and Opinions

There has been a lot of coverage in recent weeks about the future of minor injury units here in Banff and in Turriff.

Understandably, there has been concern about any suggestion of a downgrade in services provided locally. 

It is Mental Health Awareness Week and it is clear that Scotland’s mental health services are falling far short of what is needed.

A number of those who are affected by are children and young adults born with genetic and undiagnosed conditions like 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome (22q).

We are at the threshold of a new era for power generation, which will provide green power while boosting the UK economy.

I’m glad that climate change is firmly back on the political agenda, most notably the Committee on Climate Change’s report, which was published on Thursday.

In a very informative couple of sessions at the Scottish Affairs Select Committee on Tuesday and Wednesday, I heard evidence from banking figures as to their take on the wave of branch closures we have seen in the last few years.

Last week at Westminster, the business, energy and industrial strategy (BEIS) committee published a report on the need to accelerate the development of carbon capture, storage and utilisation (CCUS) technology.

I was saddened to hear of the death of a creel fisherman after an incident off the Banffshire coast last week.

Media reports suggested that a fellow fisherman had alerted the emergency services after the man fell into the water near Macduff.

As an MP with a large rural constituency, I like to know how communities outside towns feel about their safety.

Rural crime is on the increase and I know that acquisitive theft – for example tractors or metal from less well protected farms – is a large part of that.

I think it’s fair to say that the public are utterly fed-up of politicians talking about Brexit – yet, I’m afraid that is exactly what I am about to do!

Last week in Westminster, I was pleased to welcome Robert Goodwill MP, the new Fisheries Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and food to his role. One of his first official duties was respond to the Agriculture and Fisheries debates in which I spoke.

While the technicalities and timings of our departure from the EU continue to be debated at Westminster, MPs have also been working on post-Brexit immigration policy.

This will be very important after we leave the EU.