Local Council elections. Who will be the lucky winner's keeping the Courthouse Gargoyle's company for the next four years?

So, we are to have an election after all, for a while it looked possible that there wouldn’t be one but eight hopefuls have put themselves forward for the public vote.

Three out of the four current Councillors are standing; Liz MacDonald (SNP), Sandy Park (Ind), and Laurie Fraser (Ind). The fourth, John Matheson, is taking his golden handshake and standing down.

The other five, some of whom are known about the town and some have never been heard of, are locals Graham Marsden (LibDem), Jim Lennon (Ind) and David Fraser (Ind). The unknowns, and so far unheard of’s in this household, are Bob Ross (Con) and Ron Stevenson (Lab).

Out of the eight, leaflets have only been received from three and, to be truthful, only one of these provides any in-depth information about what they stand for. Perhaps some of the others are riding on their previous performances? This time round this may not be such a foregone conclusion as in the past. Nairn no longer consists of four wards with one Councillor in each, it will now be one ward with four Councillors. So, where previously it could be relied on that a fair whack of the vote could come from concentrating on keeping everyone within the ward being represented happy and not being too bothered about upsetting those in other wards, now there will be a bigger reliance of having to have get a larger slice of more voters to win. Could this provide an opportunity for disgruntled voters to have a ‘payback’ vote?

This is certainly going to be one of the most interesting local elections for a long time, apart from the changes to the wards there will also be a change in how we actually vote and, as well as being interesting, it will also be very confusing to some voters. The Single Transferable Vote System will be used for the first time, full details and an explanation can be found here:

For a start, you have to put a number beside each candidate, not a cross. Then, in our case because there are eight candidates, you decide who your first preference is then your second, third and up to eighth. On top of this it would seem that you don’t have to ‘rate’ all eight and can pick as many as you like. Reading it it’s not as confusing as it seems but for many voters confronted by this at the polling station for the first time could result in much bemusement. Let’s hope there will be some literature appearing to provide an easy guide on how to use the system.

There is a note of caution about what will happen after the vote though with potential worries about the counting system.

With just over two weeks to go, let’s see how things hot up!

Swan tales

During stormy weather a few weeks ago this young swan fell foul to a feathered territorial battle and ended up bruised, battered and exhausted on a footpath near to the river.

The SSPCA were called and the Inspector came out. He gave the youngster a check over and decided to relocate him to a place of safety away from the battle scene and the marauders.

Off they went with the swan safely tucked under the Inspector's wing!

Nairn's first webcam?

Is it? Try here if you don't feel like going down the beach today - just have a look on-line instead. The kind person that installed it is not sure how long it will stay however.

Blazing Paddles versus the Breadcrumb Brigade.

Many Nairnites are up in arms about the proposed Inverness canoe club slalom course right in the middle of the resident swans territory and are resorting to all democratic means possible to resist the threat. Existing and prospective councillors will be getting an ear and an e-mail box full too as you read this report from the front line. If you want the full story rush out and buy a Nairnshire while stocks last, and get a loaf of bread while you’re there please. The question is will the well-fed wildlife of the river Nairn be able to cope on its own anyway?

Nollaig chridheil - Merry Christmas

Nollaige Chridheil agus Bliadhna Mhath ùr nuair a thig e

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year when it comes

Yeah, nothing interesting ever happens in Nairn..

Here's a very small video that captures a bit of the night, thanks to everyone that worked so hard to put on a show for us citizenery, especially the children of Nairnshire: you really got Christmas off to a good start. Looking forward to next year already.

Soap box gurn, well cornflake box type of gurn then.

I hope we get something decent coming out of the elections in May both at the regional and the Scottish Parliament level, but sadly I don’t think there’s anyone out who is going to save the world for us. We can fill the blue box up to the brim with empty tins of Tennents and past issues of the Nairnshire Telegraph but there’s still a long way to go. I was looking at a vid tonight. Pics around a tune that has just as much relevance today as it did 40 years ago when it first came out, the leaves used to fall off the trees well before November in those halcyon days.

The real worrying thing is that everyone in India and China thinks it would be a good idea if they had a car and a fist full of credit cards too, shoe shops refitted, new fancy suburbs next to the airport and a mega Tescos. Perhaps hydrogen powered go-karts will save the day. It's all beyond this blogger, he just hopes he gets the chance to vote for Bill Shand.

SNP on the move, Am partaidh naiseanta a' deànamh adhartas

Some new faces in the crowd as the SNP leafleted Nairn today. Former Highland Councillor Bill Shand is now an SNP activist, like a lot of folk he has had enough of the London parties and told the Gurn that he thinks Independence is the only way foward for Scotland.

Occasionally a shop is refitted and as part of that a guady plastic fascia will come down and for a brief moment you will get a glimpse of how things used to be; of the days when you didn't need to go to Inverness if you wanted something a bit unusual. Those days are gone now, and in the past they must remain?

Utube better than the telly?

This entry has no connection with Nairn apart from an amazing vid being seen on a computer in in the town. No need for telly anymore that's for sure. The film maker is a Scot called Ron Stirling.