Sir David Amess Summer Adjournment

John Lamont Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd July 2025 Commons Chamber

[John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)]

I am pleased to speak in the Sir David Amess Adjournment debate. One of the highlights of my year is my annual summer surgery tour; I hold over 75 surgeries in towns and villages across my constituency over 10 days. This is in addition to my usual monthly surgeries. The summer recess gives me the opportunity to get to the more remote and isolated parts of my constituency with my Scottish Parliament colleague Rachael Hamilton MSP. There are still a few appointments available, so I encourage anyone out there who would like one to get in touch and book one.

It has been another busy year. I want to focus on some of the campaigns in the Scottish Borders over the last year, and the incredible work of those in the Borders who make our community such an amazing place to live. Access to cash is a huge issue there. Residents in Eyemouth and Selkirk have been left without adequate banking facilities for far too long. I was delighted to present a petition in the House of Commons, signed by over 1,400 local people, calling for new banking hubs to be created. The Scottish Borders need more banking hubs, so that local people have access to the essential services they need. The hub in Jedburgh in my constituency is a very good example. It serves local businesses and residents, and is supported by local staff from the post office.

The Scottish Borders are under attack: there are far too many windfarms, solar farms, battery energy storage units and pylons. The Borders is a beautiful place to live and visit, but that beautiful landscape is being blighted by new energy infrastructure. I have been leading a campaign against these developments, and we formed a group called Action Against Pylons Scottish Borders to lead the campaign in our local communities. I particularly pay tribute to the outgoing chair of the group, Rosi Lister, for all her work in getting it up and running, and for her support in leading this campaign. I also thank the dozens of other residents who have supported this cause.

One of the big, controversial stories in the Scottish Borders in recent months has been the Scottish Borders council’s attempts to shut or mothball several nurseries. Local residents were quite rightly furious about the council’s initial proposals. The decision was wrong and needed to be reversed. I met so many parents who were concerned that their young children would be forced to travel long distances to go to nursery. Many other parents were going to be forced to give up work, simply to look after their kids. It was a disgrace that the council was ignoring the views of so many parents and families across the Borders, but I am pleased that the council rightly saw sense and is reviewing the decision. To make matters worse, the council is now considering a consultant’s report on closing further public services, such as libraries, swimming pools and leisure centres. I am completely against most of those proposals, and will continue to campaign against them.

I pay tribute to volunteers across the Scottish Borders. I started my “volunteer of the year” awards to celebrate the many dedicated and selfless people in the Borders who do whatever they can to help others. I received hundreds of entries, and it is hard to choose who to award, but I will mention a few. Kyle McKinlay, who coaches young teams at Tweedbank Thistle football club, is making a big difference in his community. David Shepherd is involved in organisations including Presenting Coldstream, Coldstream football club and Coldstream bowling club. There are also all the volunteers at Lavender Touch in Galashiels, who provide incredible support to people living with cancer and their loved ones. Their work and support make incredibly difficult times for people a little bit easier.

Finally, I pay tribute to Kelso cyclist Oscar Onley, who at the age of 22 is competing in the Tour de France as we speak. He is truly an inspiration to many young cyclists, not only in the Borders but across Scotland and all parts of the United Kingdom. I have fond memories of Oscar, because when I was training to do my ironman back in 2014, he, at the age of 11, showed me how to cycle up some of the very steep hills in the Scottish Borders. Even at that young age, he demonstrated mastery, and what a great cycling talent he was going to be. I am sure he has a fantastic cycling career ahead of him. I wish him well in the Tour de France over the coming days, and with his future cycling career.