Candidates and Constituency Assessments

'Jim Wallace, the party's Scottish leader, saw his majority in Orkney more than halved from 4619 to 1755.' David Ross in the Herald, 3 rd May 2003.

Orkney & Shetland

Candidates

	Labour	Richard Meade
	Scottish National Party	John Mowat
	Conservative & Unionist	Frank Spencer-Nairn
	Liberal Democrat	Alistair Carmichael MP
	Scottish Socialist Party	John Aberdein
	UK Independence Party	Scotty Dyble
	Free Scotland Party	Brian Nugent
	Legalise Cannabis Alliance	Paul Cruickshank

Candidates

The Labour candidate is Richard Meade.

The SNP candidate is John Mowat. He was born in John O'Groats on the 3rd January 1945. He is married with three children. He attended Wick High School and Aberdeen University, where he graduated BSc (Hons) Chemistry. He obtained his Teachers Certificate from Aberdeen College of Education (now Northern College) and is currently Principal Teacher of Chemistry at Kirkwall Grammar School. He is a member of the EIS. John joined the SNP in 1974 and stood for the Orkney constituency in the 1999 Scottish Parliament elections and for Westminster in 2001. John is Secretary of the Orkney Norwegian Association and Chairman of Kirkwall Kayak Club. He is also Secretary of the Orkney Sports Council and Development Group.

Tory candidate, Frank Spencer-Nairn, owns a deer and sheep farm in Struy. He is a former Chairman of the Conservatives Area Campaign Forum and the Party's Scottish Council. Having graduated in Engineering Frank has extensive business experience, formerly working for Deloitte and Co. He is a Justice of the Peace and a former Chairman of Inverness, Loch Ness and Nairn Area Tourist Board. Frank Spencer Nairn contested Ross, Cromarty & Skye in 1987, coming second with 19.7%, and Moray in 2001, coming third with 23.1 %.

Lib Dem MP, Alistair Carmichael was born in 1965 and was educated at Port Ellen Primary School, Islay High School and Aberdeen University. He succeeded to the Orkney & Sheland seat in 2001 when Jim Wallace stood down to concentrate on the Scottish Parliament. He contested Paisley South for the Lib Dems in 1987, coming second with 15.1 %, 182 votes ahead of the Tories and 424 votes at the head of the SNP. Before being elected to Westminster he was a solicitor, an assistant procurator fiscal, and a hotel manager. His interests include the Church of Scotland, music, helping women and amateur dramatics.

The SSP candidate is John Aberdein a former herring-fisherman, diver and teacher, now a writer and researcher. He has been active in community and trade union politics for many years. A former Labour candidate in Orkney & Shetland, John left New Labour in disgust. He is passionate about energy issues and believes that massive public investment needs to go into wave and tidal development now. In 2003 he stood for the SSP in Orkney,coming fourth with 11.42 %, the highest SSP vote outside of Glasgow.

The UK Independence Party candidate is Scotty Dyble. He was born, raised and is still resident in Shetland with his wife and daughter.

The Free Scotland Party candidate is Brian Nugent, who is 52 and married with 3 children. An ex-Secretary of Shetland SNP. Brian is a lecturer at Shetland College of Further Education where he is Secretary of Shetland College branch of the Educational Institute of Scotland College Lecturers Association and is the lecturing staff representative on Shetland College Council. Originally from Coatbridge, Brian is an Albion Rovers Supporter. As a member of the SNP, he contested Coatbridge & Chryston at the 1997 Westminster elction, coming second with 17.02 %, while at the 2003 Scottish parliamentary elections, he was eleventh on the SNP's Highlands & Island regional list.

The canddate for the Legalise Cannabis Alliance (LCA) is Paul Cruickshank. He is aged 31 and works as a joiner in Peterhead. He is a long-time campaigner for the legalisation of cannabis and an activist for Friends of the Earth.

7 th June 2001 Westminster Election

(No boundary change)

Turnout: 16,733 (52.44 %)
Logo	Party	Candidate	Votes	%	% change
	Liberal Democrat	Alistair Carmichael	6,919	41.35 %	- 10.64 %
	Labour	Robbie Mochrie	3,444	20.58 %	+ 2.31 %
	Conservative	John Firth	3,121	18.65 %	+ 6.42 %
	Scottish National Party	John Mowat	2,473	14.78 %	+ 2.08 %
	Scottish Socialist Party	Peter Andrews	776	4.64 %	(+ 4.64 %)
	Lib Dem hold	Lib Dem majority	3,475	20.77 %	- 12.95 %

Local Government wards in the constituency

No boundary or name change. This is the old Orkney & Shetland seat.