Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar outlines economic plans and talks East Beach Bridge on visit to Lossiemouth
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SCOTTISH Labour leader Anas Sarwar has outlined his post-pandemic recovery plan on a visit to Lossiemouth.
Mr Sarwar paid visit to Lossie, where his grandfather moved from Pakistan in the 1940s, over the weekend to visit family and local businesses.
During his visit, he highlighted his plans for economic recovery in rural and coastal areas, as well as calling for the prompt reopening of the East Beach Bridge.
The Labour leader's visit to Lossie followed his stop at the Fiona Elcock Vaccination Centre in Elgin on Friday afternoon.
He said: "What I'm keen to do is speak to as many people as possible about how we challenge the in-built structural inequalities that existed pre-pandemic that have been exasperated by the pandemic.
"How do we get our politics outside the central belt and have a recovery that works for everyone? We want to push power and resource to our communities so we can invest in local economies.
"For places like Elgin, Lossie and across Moray, there are so many young people that are forced to leave for opportunities, relationships, eduction and jobs.
"I want people to be able to live local, grow up local, learn local, study local, work local, bring up families local, retire local and create thriving local communities."
Mr Sarwar visited Lossiemouth on holiday every summer as a child, but was returning for the first time in a few years at the weekend.
He said he hoped to see the reopening of the town's East Beach Bride as soon as possible.
"We have all got a new-found appreciation for our local environment," he said. "The bridge that connects the Lossie community to the beach being closed for a number of years I find, frankly, unacceptable.
"I hear the funding has been secured so let's get it open, get people enjoying the local environment and get tourists back – when it's safe to do so – to invest in the local community so we can have a thriving economy here in Moray."
