Dave Thompson MSP

The Scottish Parliament is, of course, still in recess although we will be back down in Edinburgh on the 1st of September after nine weeks on home ground.

My wife, Veronica, and I took the opportunity to have two weeks holiday in Lake Garda, Italy and another week in the run up to our youngest daughter, Eilidh's wedding on 24th July. The trip to Lake Garda was great, not least because we flew directly there from Inverness which is a huge advantage, compared to driving to Aberdeen or the Central Belt, especially on the way home.

I have also managed a few walks with my eldest grand-daughter Yasmin, who is 11, culminating in a hike up her very first Munro, Cairngorm. It is a real pleasure to be able to spend a bit of time with family at this time of year, especially the young ones, as time is usually in short supply.

The rest of the recess has been busy with casework, surgeries and visits to local organisations and businesses. We have also attended quite a few games and shows and taken stands at some, most notably the Black Isle Show which was blessed with excellent weather this year.

On the good news front I was particularly pleased when the Scottish Government's Town Centre Regeneration Fund (TCRF) award of £462,920 for Dingwall was announced.

This is excellent news for the town in which I have my constituency office and I really look forward to seeing first-hand what will be developed. This award will have a major impact on the town centre, support local businesses, create jobs and attract future investments.

An issue which has dominated the agricultural news is the draft Crofting Reform Bill consultation paper. The consultation has generated many responses, both for and against, but I must say that I was very disappointed in the response from the LibDems which was just "Stop the Bill", a completely negative statement with no positive suggestions on how to improve the lot of our crofting communities.

The last Crofting Bill, promoted by LibDem Ross Finnie, which advocated a completely free market in crofts, was roundly condemned, and was the reason for the setting up of the Shucksmith inquiry which led to the current consultation and it is time the LibDems told us how they would progress this important matter.

The consultation paper is just that and the Scottish Government will use the responses to refine the proposals in order to deal with issues like unworked crofts, croft housing and the democratisation of the Crofting Commission. I am sure that the many responses will be fully taken into account by the Minister who is part of a listening Government which will respond accordingly in due course.

Finally, although not a specific Ross-shire event, I thought I should tell you about a commemoration on the banks of the river Ness which I attended and spoke at on the 8th of August. This was the 64th anniversary of the detonation of two nuclear bombs in Japan at the end of the Second World War.

The first nuclear bomb was exploded over Hiroshima on 6th August 1945 while a second followed three days later on 9th August at Nagasaki, killing about 200,000 between them. Many more people died later from burns, cancers and other illnesses.

After the ceremony we launched paper boats and origami cranes, the bird symbol of peace in Japan, on the river. This tradition started with a young Japanese girl who was in hospital after the blasts. She decided to make 1,000 origami cranes and after her death this became a tradition which has been carried on to this day.

We must never forget the horror of nuclear war and this is why commemorative events like this are so important, especially as the Labour government intend spending £25 billion to replace the ageing Trident nuclear submarines and a further £50 billion over the next 25 years to maintain them. Quite simply, they must be stopped.