Scottish Parliament By-Election 2019 / Brydon Goodlad
Conservative
It is a privilege to stand as a candidate for the Scottish Parliament for Shetland.
I am Shetland born and bred and was raised in Scalloway where I attended the junior high school.
I now live in Walls with my wife and our three children, and I work in the building trade.
This by-election offers an opportunity for people to think again about the representation they want at Holyrood.
Many people in Shetland are fed up of the SNP and tired of Nicola Sturgeon’s constant threats of another independence referendum.
The SNP government in Edinburgh is also failing on the economy, on education and on health.
I would be a strong voice for this area against this separatist agenda.
I am also the only major party candidate who is committed to leaving the European Union.
We were all asked to vote in the 2016 referendum on question of whether the UK – as the member state – should leave the EU.
More than 17 million people across the country voted for Brexit – and politicians must now deliver on the will of the people.
The new Prime Minister has made clear that he wants to put an end to the delay and indecision and bring us out by 31 October – no matter what.
I fully support that position. It is high time that we followed through on the outcome of the 2016 referendum and came out of the EU.
After Brexit, we can take back control over our waters for the first time in more than 40 years.
And we can design a new system of support for agriculture that better suits the needs of Scottish farmers.
There are many other issues of concern here in Shetland, not least in relation to large-scale windfarms.
I am supportive of renewable energy, particularly offshore wind and tidal power. However, I cannot support the Viking Energy wind farm development.
I think the entire process has been handled very badly, and the views of many local people have been ignored.
It is not right to have more than 100 of these enormous structures cutting right through the central mainland.
I would also like to address the issues of affordable transport to the mainland.
The lifeline ferry services are far too expensive, and I know that most people are thoroughly fed-up of it.
It is about time that islanders got a better deal on transport.
We need to be going forward with fixed links between the island communities.
My party colleague Jamie Halcro-Johnston MSP has called for more studies into the cost of increasing the number of bridges and tunnels, which could bring economic advantages to the area.
I have lived in Shetland all my life, and more than anything else, I want to see the best delivery of the services that my family and I rely on day in, day out.
I would be a champion for my local community in Holyrood. I hope you feel able to give me your support.
Brydon Goodlad
Email contact: brydon4shetland@gmail.com
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