Standing for elected office was not part of my retirement plans.

Full statement

Having organised the campaign against cuts to budgets, jobs, and courses at UHI Moray I was positively impressed by the support we received from the local Labour Party – which led me to join.

When this by-election came up in Elgin South I was approached by a number of people to put my name forward, and I am honoured to have been selected by local members to fight this election in the area in which I live.

The recent general election has shown that Scotland is scunnered with the SNP and that voters see Labour as the best chance for change. Elgin has a consistent record of electing Labour councillors stretching back over 40 years. We think we have a real chance of gaining another Labour seat on the Moray Council in this by-election, which will send a clear message to the Scottish Government: we’ve had enough.

I’m standing on a positive platform of supporting our local young people and growing our local economy by investing in education and training.