Shrewd move or political suicide? Wick hopeful Andrew Jarvie among those moving many miles to stand for council in local authority elections
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Right now there are 142 election candidates banging on doors across the Highlands.
Yet some have wandered far from their own doorstep. In fact, some have wandered 100 miles away.
Is this local democracy gone wrong? Or a welcome fresh perspective?
Former Lochaber councillor Andrew Baxter has popped up 100 miles from his Kinlochleven home to contest the Cromarty Firth seat.
Mr Baxter – an outspoken critic of the independent administration in the last political term – has also switched from independent to Conservative.
Then we have two more Andrews, who have done a ward swap. Andrew Sinclair, former Conservative councillor in Wick and East Caithness, is upping sticks and standing for election in Inverness South.
Meanwhile, his party colleague Andrew Jarvie is doing the reverse – leaving his seat in Inverness South to stand in Wick.
In a less dramatic shift, newly-elected councillor Colin Aitken has switched from Inverness West to Inverness South. Mr Aitken joined Highland council in the by-election last August.
Neither Mr Aitken nor Andrew Sinclair responded to requests for comment. However, Mr Jarvie describes his own move as an “epiphany”.
“I had an epiphany in February when I was up in Caithness,” he says. “I was thinking of what I have enjoyed the most in council and where I think I can make the biggest difference. It’s 100 per cent up here.”
Mr Jarvie believes Caithness has great untapped potential – particularly in Dounreay – but has suffered neglect from centralised public services.
In particular, he pointed to the poor state of the roads, saying that Caithness gets 76p for every £1 spent in Inverness. He also believes the county didn’t get its fair share of the lucrative City Region Deal.
Mr Jarvie says he will move to Caithness if elected, while his party colleague Andrew Sinclair decided to stand in Inverness because that’s where he wants to live.
A cynic might suggest that seat switching is more about political strategy than championing communities.
Are political parties struggling for candidates in the Highland election?
Absolutely not, says Mr Jarvie. “The Conservatives are the only party to stand someone in every ward.”
“I did this because it’s what I felt was right,” he adds. “There was a risk that it could be seen as someone from the outside thinking they know what’s best.
“So far, people are almost humbled that I have given up my safe seat and dropped my parliamentary ambitions to pursue this.”
The six candidates for Wick and East Caithness are Raymond Bremner (SNP incumbent) Bill Fernie (independent), Andrew Jarvie (Conservative), Neil MacDonald (Labour), AI Willie Mackay (independent incumbent) and Jan McEwan (Liberal Democrat).
