COLIN CAMPBELL: After Lib Dem Sir Danny Alexander's disappearing act, there's still a role in Inverness for Drew Hendry of the SNP
When Sir Danny Alexander - or plain Danny as he was then - was ousted as the Inverness constituency MP by Drew Hendry in 2015 he disappeared to China where he took up a well-paid role with a major bank.
Given the level of unpopularity he'd acquired with many of his constituents during a highly controversial time in office, China was at a suitable distance.
There have been no reports of Drew Hendry disappearing in exile to the Orient. What plans does he have for the future?
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The precarious nature of life as an elected politician becomes very obvious at election time. One day you are everywhere, with a bustlingly high profile. The next you are nowhere, with plenty of spare time to lick your wounds.
This was particularly apparent with Drew Hendry.
Whatever anyone thought of him he certainly made his mark in the constituency on a weekly and even daily basis.
During his time as MP he had several leading roles with the SNP, which gave him a TV and radio presence. He used his regular column in the Courier to highlight some local concerns and the news pages of the wider media to present others. He had a busy schedule of meetings and community engagements. And he and his team maintained a very strong social media presence.
During the election he remained the odds-on favourite to win, and a couple of opinion polls also gave the same indications. I said here I thought it would be very close and that there was every chance he would lose. I should have placed a bet.
After confusing delays in the count, he announced he was heading for London for a prior engagement and would not be around for the declaration of the result. I doubt if that trip south, which he'd made so many times en route to Westminster, was anything other than a very gloomy and dejected one.
However a new man's time had come and it was Angus MacDonald who experienced the elation Drew Hendry would have felt in 2015 when he sent Danny Alexander on his way.
That's how it goes, and I've seen or heard nothing from Mr Hendry since. Some people will have, of course, but his public profile has gone from sky high to invisible. He no longer has any public responsibilities or obligations to fulfil.
And for a time he may be glad of that. Before becoming an MP he was in a demanding role as leader of Highland Council. So he may well enjoy being free from the burdens these jobs impose.
But I doubt if we've seen or heard the last of Drew Hendry. Unlike Danny Alexander, who was widely viewed as being too much of a Tory lapdog in the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition, he did not alienate people during his time as MP. He was swept away by a fierce anti-SNP backlash in the general election, but was seen even by his opponents as being moderate in his stance on independence, unlike some of his extremist SNP colleagues. When he was beaten, there was no personal animosity directed towards him.
Over the years he has acquired experience and knowledge which should not go entirely to waste. He's no longer an MP but there's certainly a role for him somewhere in public affairs. What it is only he can decide, but he surely still has the energy. He can still do more for Inverness and the wider area than Danny Alexander did, with his lucrative disappearing act to China.
