Difficult to think of life without Queen Elizabeth
Since I last wrote for the Blairgowrie Advertiser, the nation has been coming to terms with the passing of Her Majesty the Queen.
I want to express my sincere condolences to the Royal family on behalf of the people of the Perth and North Perthshire constituency.
I know the deep appreciation my constituents have for her years of selfless dedication, service and devotion.
The Queen has been a central figure to the lives of so many of us and it is hard to imagine a future without her.
She had a great relationship with Perthshire, which she visited on a number of occasions during her reign.
Every time she came here, crowds welcomed her and swarmed to wish her well.
The funeral will have just taken place by the time you read this, marking a new era for us all.
In the days before her passing, parliament had just reconvened from summer recess.
I really enjoyed spending the summer out and about in Perthshire, meeting with constituents and local businesses.
This year felt particularly special, with many of the big events in the Perthshire calendar taking place for the first time since the pandemic.
I hope you were all able to enjoy some of the events on offer and made the most of the warm weather.
But for many people, the sunny weather will have been clouded by a sense of anxiety about what this winter will hold, with double-digit inflation and energy bills through the roof.
The cost of living crisis was practically all anyone in parliament was talking about in the first three days of the new term, with Liz Truss unveiling her emergency‘support’ package when the news broke about the Queen’s condition.
Understandably, scrutiny of these plans had to be largely put on pause from there.
However, the fact of the matter is that winter is fast approaching and millions still face the prospect of having to choose between heating or eating in the colder months.
It is absurd that this is the reality in a country like Scotland, where there is an abundance of natural and renewable energy resources at our disposal.
It goes without saying that, upon return to parliament, at the top of my priorities will be calling for additional support for the most vulnerable households in order to guarantee protection for everyone this winter.
In other news, I am pleased to announce that this term I will be taking up the role of shadow DEFRA spokesperson.
This will involve looking at the impact of Brexit, trade deals,‘agflation’and labour shortages in the agriculture sector, to name just a few examples.
Perth and north Perthshire is one of the most varied rural constituencies in Scotland and I know how difficult the past few years have been for rural communities.
I very much look forward to working with them to find ways to assist with their most pressing concerns.