Scotland on Sunday - Young voters fired up to join the political fray

Before the independence referendum, young Scots were often seen as disconnected from politics. But when voters aged 16-17 were handed the vote for the first time, around 80% of eligible under-18s signed up.

Three years later, we have a 22-year-old MP in Mhairi Black, a 22-year-old MSP in Ross Greer and an 18-year-old Labour candidate, Eli Aldridge, standing for Westminster. But what is most noticeable is the upsurge in young representation at local level.

In this month's council elections every major party had several candidates aged under 30 elected, some barely out of school.

Euan Blockley, Conservative councillor for Glasgow's Linn Ward, is now the youngest elected representative in Scotland. The 19-year-old only joined the party last year but was backed unanimously by his party's local branch when he stepped forward to run.

He said: “I first got involved because of the independence referendum and supported the Better Together campaign straightaway.

“But it was last year when I got more and more into politics. I was constantly watching PMQs and Question Time and Daily Politics – my Mum was getting sick of it because it's all I would talk about. Then I joined the Conservatives because I thought Ruth Davidson was the leader defending the union.”

Davidson was also a catalyst for the decision of Springburn and Robroyston councillor Christina Cannon to enter politics. She is also 19, but represents the SNP.

“Ruth Davidson and the MSP Sandra Whyte had a debate in my school. I was undecided until that debate, but after hearing their arguments and doing some research I swung to a definite Yes to independence," she said.

“Seeing the impact this Tory government has on Scotland and the lack of powers the Scottish Government has to mitigate how vulnerable people are affected convinced me.”

Cannon decided to run for her ward only six weeks before the election. “It's an area with a high level of poverty,” she said. “I understand that and relate to it so when it came to these elections I wanted to be involved. The responses on the door were fantastic, but I was still slightly in shock when I won."

The referendum was not the starting point for every young candidate. Ben Lawrie, 22, joined the Liberal Democrats in 2013 after developing an interest during university.

Elected in the Monifeith and Sidlaw seat on Angus Council, he said working to improve mental health provision is among his key priorities.

“I was prepared for age to be a barrier and for people to say I was wet behind the ears, but when they saw me running an upbeat social media campaign I think they saw that someone with a fresh face and a lot of energy could be good here.”

Adam Wilson, 21-year-old Labour councillor for Annandale North, is another fresh face who believes energy and ideas were vital reasons he was elected. "Some people on the doorstep question my age and asked 'would you manage it?' But I think I have a good understanding of the issues that affect people here.”

This article was first printed in The Scotland on Sunday on Sunday 14 May 2017.

The Scotsman - Food for thought as new 'social' restaurant opens its doors

Picture: Kerrin Carr

Work has begun on a new 'social' restaurant in Ayr, which is aiming to fight food poverty and promote community spirit.

The restaurant, named Unity Grill, is the brainchild of Angela McNay, who has pledged 100% of the profits will be invested into fighting food poverty.

Ms Mcnay, who has just finished a social policy degree, has been volunteering at her local food bank for the last three years.

She believes food poverty and social isolation go hand in hand and wants Unity Grill to “to help alleviate hunger in a meaningful, communitarian way" by allowing "those who cannot afford to pay the chance to sit at our table with those who can”.

“I wanted to create a space where that's not a barrier so customers have the option of volunteering an hour of their time for a voucher, meaning you can come back another time if you don't have the money. It restores people's dignity because it's not about getting something for nothing.”

Angela has long been committed to campaigning against deprivation in her area. As a student at the School for Social Entrepreneurs, she even wrote her dissertation on food poverty.

She said: “My inspiration really comes from the experiences I've had working at the South Ayrshire food bank and other food organisations. I've seen the impact that food poverty has on people every day.

“This is my attempt to do something different. So much of our culture is based around food. You meet your friends for food and coffee, but if you face food poverty you can't take part in that.

“All of our profits will go back into allowing us to use our voucher scheme. We'll also allow customers to 'pay it forward' so customers can pay for a coffee or a lunch or someone's dinner – that will also allow us to continue to give vouchers.”

After receiving funding from the Bank of Scotland to put her plan into action, Angela set up a crowd fund to raise money for furniture and kitchen items. The £5,000 target was smashed in under two months, with 174 supporters raising £6,210.

Now she is adding the finishing touches to the restaurant with a little help from the good people of Ayr. Yesterday, volunteers from Give a Day Ayrshire, an initiative where people take a day out to support local projects, painted the exterior of the shop.

She said: “Everything we've done has involved the local community. We've also been running different courses every week. For example, we're running a course with the Upcycling Pallet Company so people can learn things like how to lay a floor and how to make furniture.

“It's not just about using volunteers to get things ready; it's all about teaching and learning things together.

“It helps the community have ownership of the space. It means someone can come in and say 'I made that' and take ownership of a part of it.”

Although the project has been supported by the local community, Angela said that staff would be hired and paid and the restaurant would be run as a business.

She has also appointed an all-female board of directors to help ensure the restaurant opens smoothly at the end of the summer while involving the community every step of the way.

Laura Waters, one of the directors, said: “As well as tackling food poverty it is about bringing communities together. The beautiful thing about Unity Grill is that if cannot to pay you are able to volunteer your time.

“No one wants to use a foodbank and with Unity Grill you can choose want you want to eat and it will be fresh good food.”

This article was printed in The Scotsman newspaper's Giving Back section on November 8 2017.