Politics / Sole Highlands and Islands Labour MSP’s role redefined as party takes power at Westminster
FOLLOWING last week’s Labour landslide, Shetland’s voice should be heard louder and clearer in the corridors of power according to the party’s Highlands and Islands MSP Rhoda Grant who is visiting the isles this week.
Scotland returned 37 Labour MPs to Westminster in the general election including, significantly, former journalist Torcuil Crichton who is now representing the Western Isles.
Grant said that working closely with an MP who understands island life and mentality would ultimately also be of benefit to Shetland.
And she revealed that the Labour group in the Scottish Parliament was already being lobbied by industry and other interest groups in expectation of a change in the devolved government following the Holyrood elections in 2026.
Grant’s visit to Shetland, during the week following the general election, is of course coincidence as it had been organised long before former prime minister Rishi Sunak announced the 4 July snap election.
Speaking to Shetland News she said she was “really looking forward” to working with Crichton after having been the only Labour parliamentarian (MSP or MP) in the Highlands and Islands for many years.
While in Shetland, Grant is meeting with representatives from Shetland Islands Council, NHS Shetland and Shetland Fishermen’s Association, among others.
She said her access to government ministers who are now in the same party would undoubtedly be easier and more straightforward.
“Digital connectivity falls to the UK Government, and I really hope there will be a response,” she said. “It’s still a huge issue in island communities where it is harder to get the technology out, and because there a fewer people involved you don’t have the same outcry. I really hope that that one will move apace.
“The further you are from the centre the more essential digital connectivity is.”
She also expects some movement on the now renamed Levelling Up policy under which Shetland is in line to receive around £27 million for a new Fair Isle ferry and associated infrastructure.
“My assumption would be that if Levelling Up funding has been given then that would continue, you would not take funding away from anybody,” she said.
“But I also assume that the whole system will be changed (…) I would hope that how essential the new Fair Isle ferry is will not be lost on anybody.”
The new UK Government has made it clear from the start that it is keen to work closely with the devolved administrations in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
Grant described the prospect of these new relationships as both “exciting and challenging”. But she warned not to expect too much too soon: “The country is in such a poor state. Given that things have been so bad for so long there is maybe not a huge expectation neither.”
The veteran MSP, who has been representing the area for Labour for more than 20 years, said she was excited at the prospect of Labour becoming the strongest party in the Scottish Parliament after the May 2026 elections.
“If we could form the government in the next Scottish Parliament, then you could actually have a real impact on people’s lives, given that health and education are devolved,” she said.
“The prospect of a Labour government and the ability to make change is very attractive.”
