Meet your Highlands & Islands list candidates: Conservatives and Greens

Scottish Conservative & Unionist

 

The Scottish Conservatives are the only party which is committed to reducing the tax burden which is hurting so many businesses in our region, costing jobs, and threatening us with rural depopulation. We will stop Scotland being the highest taxed part of the UK.
We will take action to tackle the soaring welfare budget and ensure the money is better spent on services like health and education, both of which have got worse under the SNP.
We believe the Scottish Government is too much focused on the Central Belt at the expense of areas like the Highlands and Islands. We will put that right, and ensure that local councils here get a fair deal so they can provide the services we all rely on.
And you can rely on the Scottish Conservatives to defend the United Kingdom, and oppose with all our might the SNP’s ambition to break up our country.

 

Tim Eagle

 

1. My passion is for rural Scotland. As a farmer myself I understand how important the contribution of our farmers and crofters, as well as that made by our fishing communities, and our other rural businesses including tourism and hospitality. They deserve effective representation and that I pledge to do.
2. I will hold ministers’ feet to the fire so they invest in our infrastructure and lifeline services. That means upgrading the A82 and A83 and reforming the way we manage the ferries. We cannot reverse rural depopulation and strengthen the local economy without fit-for-purpose transport infrastructure. This is my number one priority.
3. I commit to upholding the Nolan Principles of public life: Selflessness, Integrity, Objectivity, Accountability, Openness, Honesty, and Leadership. Truth-telling is fundamental to a healthy democracy.
4. Let’s move beyond identity politics, and unite people rather than divide them. Let’s turn our back on the populists and work together for a better future for everyone in our community.
5. It’s real and we need to take action which makes a difference and has public support. I support a sensible approach to reducing our dependence on oil and gas, rather than closing down our industry which costs jobs. Workable policies are required, not the imposition of political ideology.

 

Jamie Halcro Johnston

 

1. If local people choose to elect me by voting Scottish Conservative on the peach ballot paper, then they will have chosen someone from a rural island community – Orkney – who understands the challenges places like ours face and who will always fight to ensure their voices are heard by politicians in the Central Belt-dominated Holyrood parliament.
2. Amongst other things, keep the pressure on the next Scottish Government to deliver new ferries, reduce taxes, support small businesses and keep public services local. And not to waste time and money on another independence referendum.
3. Yes. I think people should expect nothing less of those they chose to represent them.
4. Yes, as I always have done. And regardless of who they voted for.
5. There is little doubt that our climate is changing and that increased industrialisation has played a role in that. However, the impact from emissions from Scotland – or even from across the whole of the UK - is small in a global context.
Rushing in unachievable Net Zero targets – as the SNP has done – only alienates people when they see their communities impacted by intrusive energy infrastructure which they’re told is “playing their part”, all while China opens new coal-fired power stations.

 

Helen Crawford

 

No one should feel stuck with their MSP. The election on 7 May is your opportunity to choose someone who will represent what matters to you and your family for the next five years.
As a local councillor, Scottish-qualified lawyer, and businesswoman, I have a track record of delivery. I have stood up against the way large-scale energy infrastructure is imposed on Highland communities, challenged the rural attainment gap in schools, and fought for stronger support for our teachers. I act with integrity and represent all constituents fairly, regardless of ethnicity, faith, or background.
I come to this as a public servant - and I believe that sense of purpose has been lost in our politics. For the salary attached to this role, my priority is results: better-planned energy infrastructure that respects communities, real action on rural education, support for high-quality local jobs, and more affordable homes. I will be honest about what can and cannot be achieved, and accountable for every decision I make.
Global climate change is real and demands action - so does fuel poverty, which affects too many Highland households right now. We need an energy transition that makes sense without loading extra costs onto the most vulnerable.

Scottish Family Party

 

The party’s top three candidates, Kenny Stone, Allan MacEachen, and Rachel Gibson, did not respond to our questions.

 

Scottish Greens

 

People across the country are paying more, getting less, and being told to accept it. The Scottish Greens refuse to accept it.
We already delivered the £2 bus fare cap - putting money back in your pocket every single week. We secured rent freezes during the cost-of-living crisis, scrapped peak rail fares and won won free bus travel for young people.
But there is so much more to do. We want every community to own a share of renewable energy generated on their doorstep — so the wealth from Scotland’s wind and water stays here, not in a distant shareholder’s pocket. We want affordable homes built to reflect what it actually costs to build in rural and island communities. We want services that reach people wherever they live.
Rising costs, public service cuts, and threats to security are all political choices. The Scottish Greens will make different ones. Let’s Demand Better.

 

Ariane Burgess

 

1. Because I show up. Every week in Holyrood, asking the challenging questions that West Coast communities need answered. As Convener of the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee I made sure Argyll and Bute had a voice — bringing rural and island issues to committee, getting them on the record, making them impossible to ignore. That track record matters. Give me five more years and I’ll keep delivering — more affordable homes, better services, and community ownership of renewables so local people benefit from the energy generated on their own doorstep.
2. To keep showing up — for every community from Tiree to Campbeltown, Cowal to Oban. Affordable homes built to reflect actual rural costs. Island residents guaranteed space on their own ferry routes. And a relentless push for communities to own a share of the renewable energy around them — generating real income for local people.
3. Yes. Including when it’s uncomfortable.
4. Unreservedly. Every person here deserves to feel safe and represented. No exceptions.
5. Yes, unequivocally. This coastline already feels it. The response must be fair — community-owned energy, profits staying local, and no community here left behind in the transition away from fossil fuels.

 

Kristopher Leask

 

1. You shouldn’t feel “stuck” with politicians — you should feel respected and represented. I’ve spent years as a councillor, improving infrastructure and supporting communities. Decisions made centrally can overlook our region. I will bring a strong local voice to Parliament. My commitment is simple: visible hard work, honest communication, and standing up for communities daily.
2. Public money should buy public service. I will fight to improve lives: warmer, cheaper-to-run homes, affordable housing, better ferries and public transport, and stronger local health and care services. I’ll push for more well-paid jobs, so young people can build futures here in the Highlands and Islands.
3. Honesty should be the minimum standard. That means being truthful about what I can deliver, about challenges we face, and when mistakes are made. No politician can promise to know everything or get everything right, but they can promise integrity and transparency. 
4. Every person deserves safety, dignity and equal treatment under the law, regardless of faith, ethnicity, background, sexuality, disability or identity. Scotland is strongest when everyone feels they belong. 
5. Climate change is driven largely by human activity. We’ve seen extreme weather, rising costs, damaged ecosystems, threats to food security, and pressures on communities worldwide.  For Scotland, it means coastal erosion, flooding, impacts on fisheries and farming, and higher energy insecurity if we fail to act. The threat to future generations is serious, but it is not hopeless if we respond now.

 

The third candidate on the list, Kate Willis, did not respond to our questions.

Full list of party candidates in the Highlands & Islands region

 

Advance UK

 

Matt Sheppard
Steve Skerrett

 

Alliance to Liberate Scotland
Brian Nugent
Andrew MacDonald
Kenny Mackenzie
Laùra Hänsler
Allan Duffy
Flora Badger

 

Independence for Scotland Party
Fiona Nelson

 

Independent Green Voice
Nicola Siddall

 

Reform UK
Vic Currie
Max Bannerman
Amanda Hampsey
Fred Campbell
Malcom McTaggart
Jon Whitton
John Coupland

 

Scottish Christian Party
Donald Boyd

 

Scottish Conservative & Unionist
Tim Eagle
Jamie Halcro Johnston
Helen Crawford
Ruraidh Stewart
George MacPherson
Peter Wallace
Donald MacKenzie
Douglas Barnett

 

Scottish Family Party
Kenny Stone
Allan MacEachen
Rachel Gibson
Eva Morrice
Harriet Woolmore

 

Scottish Green
Ariane Burgess
Kristopher Leask
Kate Willis
Draeyk van der Horn
Alex Armitage
Anne Thomas
Julie Christie

 

Scottish Labour
Isla McCay
Donald MacKinnon
Eva Kestner
John Erskine
Mike Macleod
Callum George
Shaun Fraser
David Blair

 

Scottish Liberal Democrat
Morven-May MacCallum
Alan Reid
Declan Gallacher
Angela Maclean
Denis Rixson
Guy Grieve
Fiona Bennett

 

Scottish Libertarian Party
Nathan Lumb

 

Scottish National Party
Maree Todd
Robert Leslie
Emma Roddick
Hannah Goodlad
Eilidh Munro
Jérémie Fernandes

 

Scottish Rural Party
Alasdair Fletcher
Ruaridh Ormiston

 

Scottish Socialist Party
Willie Hamilton
Brenda Nicholson

 

Workers Party of Britain
Syed Hussain

 

Independent
Duncan MacPherson

 

Independent
Mick Rice