Inverness Courier readers demand answers from SNP candidates
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The Inverness Courier Leadership Debate with the three candidates to become First Minister has thrown up a huge range of questions for Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf.
Readers have been highlighting the issues that matter most to them and most importantly demanding serious answers to serious concerns, particularly where they believe the Scottish Government has fallen short.
The range of the topics raised is broad and involves whether the government really is doing right by the north in economic terms and if politicians really have a grasp of the wider problems faced by the region or not.
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Some questions could apply to any part of Scotland – such as road maintenance funding – while others concentrated on the issues specific to the Highlands and Moray like full maternity services everywhere.
In Caithness, both those issues are linked because expectant mothers often have to travel to Raigmore Hospital to give birth for reasons of medical safety with many making the trip using the bad roads.
Perhaps the areas that dominated more than any other were the twin issues of improving the economy and supporting business, something the SNP is perceived as not having done well.
The chief area that came in for questioning was whether the Scottish Government is considered anti-business based on a programme with policies like the hugely controversial Deposit Return Scheme.
The impacts of that, according to many companies and traders, could be disastrous and their issue is that no one seems to be listening to them to help fix what they see as a totally broken scheme.
That theme of concerns were raised through a number of readers’ questions, painting a picture of a system of national and local government that is out of step with many people.
The issue of personal social rights, particularly for LGBTQ+ people, also came up as those concerned sought reassurance that they would be protected in law or else expressed dismay that there were question marks over the issue at all.
And there were a lot of questions about the prospect of Scottish independence. Readers questioned whether now was the time and alternatively how long Scotland must wait to govern itself and most of all what Scotland looks like politically as an independenent nation.
Perhaps surprisingly, the environment and education were not as high on readers’ agendas.
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