Inside Holyrood: Look at the record of the candidate and question what they offer but progressives who 'want to take Scotland' forward need to vote for the Conservatives

Edward Mountain says voters really need to look at the record or promises of candidates, saying the the smaller parties might be attractive but they will be unlikely to challenge the SNP.

Many thoughts will cross our minds as we consider how to vote in the constituency vote and on the party list vote.

As we weigh up the options, I believe that there should be two things that guide our decisions. What has the person or party done to justify getting our vote and what realistic policies do they have to deliver for our future. Now is the time for examining the hard facts.

In the last five years during my 60,000 mile journey around the Highlands and at the 1,100 meetings and over 400 advice surgeries, I have heard from so many people about why politicians need to do more to deliver for those that they represent. This is exactly why I got involved in politics; I felt politicians were remote and lacked the real experiences of life which don’t come from a career in politics.

Nothing highlighted this more to me than the appalling, slow and lumbering response that our Edinburgh government politicians demonstrated when the ‘whistleblowers’ called out the bullying culture within NHS Highland. Few within the centralised NHS political management stood up to what was obviously an unacceptable leadership style, that intimidated and squashed dissent. As more suffered at the hand of the bullies, politicians ran for cover. And what is worse is that an independent review, published only last week, confirmed that bullying still continues.

It is clear that we need a new approach and the only way that will happen is by voting for change. So I urge you, before you cast your constituency vote, to look at each and every candidate. Question what they offer, examine what have they done and most importantly what is their record? If you don’t know or can’t find out, contact them because only then will you make the right choice.

When it comes to the party vote, the fifteen parties and two independents that are standing seem to offer a more diverse choice but sadly that could not be further from the truth. Realistically all those who support independence will do little to challenge the SNP, they might be minor irritants but not an effective check. Some indeed seek to game the system – gambling to promote their own agenda.

So conversely it might be suggested those small parties that don’t support independence could be an effective opposition to the SNP. Not so, many are no more than a diversion, splitting the votes of those who want to stop the constant constitutional wrangles that has bedevilled politics in Scotland since 2014.

For those progressives who really want to take Scotland forward the choice is simple: you need to vote in the Highlands for the mainstream Party that can gain the most regional seats - the Scottish Conservatives.

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