Lothian MSP Sarah Boyack on 25 years of the Scottish Parliament

Edinburgh Evening News

Lothian MSP Sarah Boyack - the only current MSP who was a member of the first Cabinet - talks about 25 years of devolution, the achievements and disappointments of the Scottish Parliament.  14-05-24.

Transcript

00:00So Sarah, what's your best memory of the beginnings of devolution?

00:05I think for me it was the excitement of being elected to a Labour government in Scotland

00:09with Donald Jr as our First Minister and just being one of that team

00:13because I campaigned for Scottish Parliament, it was something our family were passionate about

00:19and for me it was a really big deal having a new Scottish Parliament established in Scotland

00:23to be part of that and then to find out a week later I was going to be a Minister in the Cabinet

00:29and be responsible for planning, transport and the environment

00:33and couldn't it be more excited?

00:35If I'd had the benefit of hindsight and known how much hard work that would be

00:40I wouldn't have been as excited but I would have still loved that opportunity

00:45because you got to change the world.

00:47Legislation on things like free bus passes that I introduced

00:51our first national parks in Scotland, that's really practical things

00:56and for me it was about improving people's lives

00:59and also thinking about how we could improve our wider environment.

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