How UK Government money is helping Scottish island communities to thrive – John Lamont, Scotland minister

Rural areas need to be able to offer well-paid jobs, affordable housing, good schools and medical care

Islanders are – I found as I toured Mull and Arran this week – resourceful, resolute, adaptable and optimistic. That last has been sorely tested of late as ferries have – time and again – been delayed or cancelled entirely as the ageing CalMac fleet, half of which was built last century, shows its age.

Of course, ships will always occasionally fall foul of the vagaries of the weather, and the mechanical gremlins which can plague any complex vessel. Islanders price in a certain amount of inconvenience as part and parcel of a life given something extra by being off the mainstream mainland.

Yet it is clear that genuine economic harm is being done by the drumbeat of ferry breakdowns. I was told daytrippers are staying away, fearful of the extra expense of an overnight stay should the ferry fail; of businesses unable to access the goods they need to service the islands, or deliver their wares to customers the far side of the waters.

Yes, transport is devolved to Holyrood but I believe that I would not be doing my job as a UK Government minister were I not to discuss such things directly. Rural Scotland wants the Scottish Government to provide reliable ferries. Agitation over independence is useless. So it was a delight for me to see first-hand what coastal communities have achieved with funding from the UK Government.

Near Oban, I visited Scottish Sea Farms' Barcaldine hatchery, awarded £5 million from the UK Government Seafood Fund. Here, I learnt more about how one of Scotland's key food exports, salmon, is becoming more sustainable and innovative, and sustaining hundreds of jobs, including 103 apprenticeships. I met with the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) to discuss how £407,715 from the UK Government's Community Renewal Fund is supporting the Seaweed Academy, bringing high-skilled jobs to the area while unlocking the secrets of a novel marine harvest.

On Mull, Loch Spelve was like a mirror as a family-run mussel farm, Inverlussa Mussels – which earlier this month was awarded £200,000 from our Seafood Fund – outlined their plans to upgrade facilities with renewable energy supply. On Arran, I pulled a pint at the re-opened Lochranza Country Inn, which received £300,000 in UK Government funding to help a group of locals buy the last remaining pub in the village.

Just a snapshot, but enough to make clear that, with talent to burn, remote and rural Scotland sometimes needs the spark of some extra cash to light the flame. If we are to fight the curse of depopulation, we must make our vast rural hinterland a more attractive proposition. That means we must create well-paid jobs, and offer access to affordable housing, good schools and medical care.

Scotland minister John Lamont at Arran's re-opened Lochranza Country Inn, which received £300,000 in UK Government funding

Rural Scotland is a powerhouse of resources, from its rich seas to its first-class produce. The renewable power revolution is already underway in its hills and glens. Raised in rural Scotland and representing a rural constituency, I know its greatest asset is its people.

On my West Coast tour, I met many inspirational people, and I am more convinced than ever that the UK Government is fully supporting them and their communities to thrive.

John Lamont is UK Government minister for Scotland and Conservative MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk