Iain McGill has stood several times before as a candidate in various elections, only narrowly missing out on a position as MSP in the last Scottish Parliamentary Election.
We met him to talk about his campaign to represent the place he lives and works.
He told The Edinburgh Reporter : “This is my patch, it’s where I was brought up where I was raised where I went to school, where I worked when I started my business and where I still run my business.
“I’m standing as a candidate because as an MP you can make a real difference to people’s lives not just on the big constitutional and economic issues, but right down to people’s lives. You can affect the support they receive and the care they receive.
“My personal priority is my background’s all working with the homeless, working with the folks mental health physical disabilities learning disabilities I live in the constituency I work in the constituency working in health and social care. I worked in international aid and development around the world. Then in Edinburgh I work in Pilrig Park School children with additional support needs, running homeless projects in town The things I like to do best scuba dive, travel, football, I’m afraid I’m a Hearts fan!
“What I want to be doing as an MP is making sure the most vulnerable are getting the services they deserve, making sure our businesses and communities are being looked after.
“For instance as the trams are getting developed down but just as North and Leith is growing it’s not just the trams developing.
“We’re seeing developments all around Leith, all around the harbour, all around the waterfront. I want to see Leith growing and I want to see it thriving. I want to see our businesses and communities looked after as we do that.
“What worries me is this just debate going on again and again about independence, going on again and again about Brexit. We made decisions, they need implemented so we can get back to the priorities.
“The priorities are health, it’s education, it’s the environment, and they’re being ignored. Absolutely, as we fight each other about flags and borders. And that’s not my priority, it’s not the priority of the country. We need to respect the referendum results we have had and get back to peoples’ priorities.”
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
