Rennie proudest of ban on driving instructors convicted of sex crimes
Willie Rennie has revealed his proudest moment in politics was passing a bill banning driving instructors convicted of sexual offences.
Speaking to The Scotsman in the fourth part of our exclusive election video series, On The Holyroad, the Scottish Liberal Democrat leader shared his pride at fixing a loophole in the law.
Mr Rennie is defending the North East Fife constituency seat at next month’s Scottish Parliament election after winning it from the SNP in 2016.
Speaking in Cupar while on an afternoon run, Mr Rennie explained while he was proud of his election successes, it was one piece of legislation that he felt most proud of.
He said: “[It’s] a tiny bit of legislation that may seem inconsequential, but I think it’s changed the lives of particularly young women, who are learning to drive.
“There was a constituent of mine, who I represent at the other end of Fife. She came to me and said ‘I was sexually assaulted by my driving instructor’. He was prosecuted, but he was out teaching another young woman the very same day.
“We investigated, we researched, we worked with the department of transport and we got the hole in the legalisation plugged.
“Now I think young women, in particular, are safer when they are learning to drive, that affects hundreds of thousands of people.
“[A] tiny bit of legislation, quite a significant loophole.”
The legislation was passed in 2008 while Mr Rennie was the MP for Dunfermline and
West Fife.
It read: “To make provision for the immediate suspension from the Register of Approved Driving Instructors of driving instructors convicted of sexual offences; and for connected purposes”.
The bill sailed through the House of Commons, passing at a first reading.
Mr Rennie also explained his tendency to be involved in bizarre photo opportunities.
The Lib Dem leader has previously given interviews where pigs have been seen having sex behind him, he has been punched by a dog, grappled a ram, gone down children’s slides or been snapped with an oversized deck chair.
He explained: “I don’t take myself too seriously – too many politicians do.
“I like to laugh. Politicians are a bit stuffy sometimes, I like to break through that and to get people to talk to me.
“That’s what politics is all about being able to connect to people, relate to their concerns and sort it out.
“I always take my politics seriously.”
The 53-year-old also laughed when confronted with the possibility his party would not win the election on May 6, but insisted more Liberal Democrat MSPS could make a difference.
He said: “I’m a strong advocate for mental health services. We’ve got 15,000 young people waiting over a year for treatment, 5,000 adults.
"It needs to be tackled. We’ve got a comprehensive plan for mental health recovery.
“The NHS, we need to create new centres for treatment on cancer.”