Lib Dems pin their Holyrood hopes on Selkirkshire
Lib Dems pin their Holyrood hopes on Selkirkshire
Andrew Keddie
andrewkeddie@tweeddalepress.co.uk
SELKIRK and the Valleys could hold the key to the Liberal Democrats reclaiming a Borders seat at Holyrood which they lost to the Conservatives in 2007.
That is the view of Tavish Scott, Scottish Lib Dem leader, who was in the Market Place on Monday for the official announcement that Euan Robson had been adopted as the party's candidate for the new, expanded constituency of Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, at next May's Scottish parliamentary elections.
"We know through previous elections at local and Westminster level that we have a strong base of support here in Selkirkshire and Euan will be part of the strongest possible Borders team," said Mr Scott.
Local MP and new Scottish Secretary Michael Moore was also in Selkirk for the announcement, vowing a "vigorous campaign" to get Mr Robson elected.
Mr Robson, who won the selection after a postal vote of the Lib Dem rank and file, will lock horns with John Lamont, the Conservative to whom he lost the existing Roxburgh and Berwickshire seat by nearly 2,000 votes in 2007.
Around 130 Lib Dem members took part in the selection process, with Mr Robson, who lives in Kelso, getting more votes than two Lib Dem councillors - Vicky Davidson from the Ettrick Valley and John Paton-Day - put together. It is understood Councillor Davidson polled around 30 votes in her first bid to win a national nomination.
Under controversial Holyrood boundary changes, Selkirkshire, currently in the Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale seat held by Lib Dem Jeremy Purvis, will split from larger county neighbours Galashiels.
Mr Purvis, who will fight Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, which includes Galashiels, told The Wee Paper: "It has been an enormous privilege to represent Selkirk and the Valleys and I will miss this hugely. Euan will be a very close colleague in the parliament."
That confidence is based on the votes cast in Selkirkshire at recent elections. In 2007 Ms Davidson came out top of the pile in the council ballot for Selkirkshire, while Mr Purvis was comfortably clear of his rivals at local polling stations.
Votes cast at May's General Election indicated Mr Moore performed better in Selkirkshire than across the whole of the Westminster constituency.
Mr Robson, 56, was elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 with a 3,585 majority over the Tory Alasdair Hutton.
He retained Roxburgh and Berwickshire with a reduced majority of 2,490 in 2003, but was stunned in 2007 when there was an 8.9 per cent swing to Mr Lamont, who went on to unsuccessfully challenge for Mr Moore's Westminster seat in May.
"Our strong support in Selkirkshire and Mr Moore's result shows the Lib Dems will take no chances in future in letting a Conservative in by default," said Mr Robson on Monday. "I accept we made some mistakes in 2007 - perhaps our supporters were complacent - and defeat was a major suprise."
He said, if elected, he would seek to have plans for a Selkirk bypass reinstated in the Scottish Government's capital transport programme and would oppose any moves to scrap or delay the construction of the Borders railway.
"I look forward to campaigning on key issues for the local economy and jobs with improved transport links," he added.
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Weather for Selkirk
Sunday 12 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 7 mph
Wind direction: West
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Temperature: 3 C to 8 C
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