A blend of topics from the district’s doorstep to the desert sands of the Middle East set the ball rolling on The Courier’s 2011 election hustings.
The turnout at the opening event in the Park Hotel, Montrose, on Tuesday perhaps revealed that the electorate of Angus North and Mearns have yet to get excited about May 5, but the questions showed that there are no shortage of important issues in voters’ minds.
First to rise to The Courier’s platform were the runners in the four-horse race for the re-drawn patch Nigel Don (SNP), Kevin Hutchens (Labour), Alex Johnstone (Conservatives) and Sanjay Samani (Liberal Democrats).
The Courier’s political reporter David Clegg chaired the evening and opened the debate with a question from Ron Harris on the release of the Lockerbie bomber.
The first response of the evening, from Mr Don, was sole support among the candidates for the stance taken by SNP justice secretary Kenny MacAskill in releasing Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.
Admitting that the Libyan’s crime was “at the extreme end” of the scale, he said that Scotland nevertheless had a well-established principle of compassionate release, and although Megrahi has subsequently exceeded expert opinion on his life expectancy by some margin, Mr Don did not believe that altered the correctness of the original decision.
Mr Johnstone said Mr MacAskill and the Scottish Government became involved in something which brought “ill repute” on the nation.
He said, “He should have been released on licence in Scotland, not allowed to return to a hero’s welcome in Libya.
“And with what’s going on in Libya, he may want to come back to Scotland for his own safety he should not have been allowed to leave this country.”‘Restorative justice’Mr Samani believed that the punishment had not fitted the crime.
He said, “The victims should always be taken into account.
“The Liberal Democrats have a concept of restorative justice and we would like to see criminals repay and restore the damage to their communities.”
He added, “It was not appropriate for him to be released.”
Focus then switched to a local level when the A90 crossing at Laurencekirk the subject of a long-running campaign was raised.
Mr Samani said, “There has been a lot of obfuscation and going round the houses for the last four years but I am supportive of the campaign for a flyover.
“What I would like to see is a Scottish roads policy based on safety.”
Mr Don, while supportive of the Mearns call, said that a bigger picture including the treacherous A9 had to be considered.
But he added, “It is the most important thing on the radar of the people who live in the area.
“I dread going there and at peak traffic times it is awful.”Case for A90 flyoverMr Hutchens said he was “convinced the case has been made by the local community” for a flyover.
He added, “But one of the things we have to look at is where the money is coming from.
“The Forth crossing is going to take a lot of money and we need to look urgently at where new sources of funding will be coming from.”
Mr Johnstone said he believed a way forward was for the project’s inclusion alongside the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route scheme.
He said, “I think it would be a simple job to extend the contracts and the funding arrangements to ensure the work is carried out.
“I remain wholly committed to finding a way to get this junction improved before somebody dies.”
A central Scots police force, education and social housing were all debated before the event concluded with a question from Angus councillor Sandy West on the recent Budget impact on the oil and gas industry.
Described by Mr Don as “uncalled for, undiscussed and unwelcome”, George Osborne’s tax was defended by Mr Johnstone, who said that in a revenue-neutral change it was clear that reductions in some areas would have to be balanced out by increases in others.
Mr Samani said, “I am disappointed that it came out of the blue, but you have to put it in the context of what else was in the budget.
“What I would said to the oil companies is not to use this an excuse to cut jobs or investment.”
Mr Hutchens said, “This could ultimately be counterproductive in terms of recovery.
“That’s what we have seen from the Tories, cutting too fast and too deep. In Montrose we have an excellent port and jobs will be affected.”
On Thursday The Courier’s team will be on a walkabout in Dunfermline ahead of the Glen Pavilion hustings.
The programme will continue in Glenrothes on April 12 and returns to Angus on Tuesday, April 19, when the spotlight will shine on Carnoustie.
Perth is the stop on April 26, followed by Cupar on April 27, and a final event in Dundee, at the city centre and then the Apex Hotel on May 2, just ahead of polling day.