The Oban Times team were celebrating this week after winning the prestigious Campaign of the Year award at the annual Highlands and Islands Media and Press Awards on Friday, February 2, writes Susan Windram.
After years of carrying stories about the lack of investment in the ferries, in transport infrastructure, in affordable housing and the impact this was having on employment, not to mention the lack of funding crippling our NHS and social care, many of these issues came to a head last year, bringing some of our most outlying and rural communities to their knees.
So we decided enough as enough and launched our campaign in July 2023, calling on the Scottish Government to increase funding for communities hurt by budget cuts, as well as demanding an improved focus on specific needs for rural communities across the West Coast and islands.
We called on the Scottish Government to open its eyes and take seriously the real issues being faced by families, individuals, businesses and communities across the West Coast and Highlands.
We launched a petition calling for urgent action and politicians sat up and took notice, with many issues raised in our campaign being discussed in parliament, while First Minister Humza Yousaf took the time to travel to Oban, meeting with reporter Sandy Neil to discuss the issues.
But the fight is not over – it’s only just begun.
So while The Oban Times team are delighted to have received the recognition of our peers for our campaign, the fight doesn’t stop here. This is just the beginning, because we will continue to fight for a better deal for all the people who live in Argyll and Bute, in Lochaber and on all the islands.
Scotland’s longest continually published community newspaper, The Ileach, serving Islay and Jura, was also celebrating on Friday night after winning Community Newspaper of the Year.
Editor Brian Palmer was at the event to collect the award.
The newspaper, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in October last year, was commended by the chairperson of the Judging Panel Nicola McAlley, who said: “Half a century on, The Ileach continues to provide a crucial community voice.”
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