Scotland’s First Lady, Moira Salmond, steps into the limelight on US trip

By TOM PETERKIN
Published on 30/09/2012 00:00

SCOTLAND’s First Lady is becoming more First-Lady-like. Moira Salmond has made a rare foray into the limelight during her husband’s trip to America for the Ryder Cup.

Mrs Salmond has been at the First Minister’s side during their visit to Chicago and has even undertaken some engagements on her own to promote Scotland on the other side of the Atlantic.

Official Scottish Government photographs pictured the First Minister’s consort ­beside a statue to Robert Burns in Chicago’s Garfield Park, where she also visited the collection of plants in the park’s famous conservatory. Her appearance in the public eye contrasted with her profile at home, where the 74-year-old former civil servant is hardly ever seen on official business with her 57-year-old husband.

On this occasion, the Scottish Government took the slightly unusual, but not unprecedented, step of outlining her official business in a statement detailing the couple’s American activities.

Mrs Salmond supported the First Minister when he made a speech at Chicago’s Council on Global Affairs. She also met the president of the St ­Andrew’s Society of Illinois.

Her American role is ­unlikely to see her adopting an ­increased profile in Scotland, but it does suggest that Mrs ­Salmond is becoming more at ease in public, particularly on trips abroad.

The First Minister has guarded his family’s privacy fiercely, with his wife always in the background at SNP conferences. Throughout her husband’s political career, she has shied away from publicity, preferring to stay at the couple’s constituency home in Strichen, Aberdeenshire.

One of her only appearances during an official engagement was to launch a £4 million fisheries research ship at ­Fraserburgh Harbour.

Yesterday, a Scottish Government source suggested that it was normal for Mrs Salmond to play a more public role when the couple were abroad.

“She is taking on similar engagements to those that she has taken on in the past,” the source said.

During her husband’s tenure as First Minister, she has joined him on a string of foreign trips, including trade missions to Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai.

She has travelled in her official capacity as Salmond’s wife and was given her own programme of events. Previous trips have included the pilgrimage to the US for Scotland Week, the series of events introduced to foster links between the two countries that coincides with the anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath.

In 2008, she stood in for the First Minister on one occasion and had her comments issued through the Scottish Government’s press office.

Today, the First Minister will play a major role in the Ryder Cup handover ceremony when he will receive the ceremonial silver putter that denotes Scotland taking over the tournament preparations.

One of the largest sporting events in the world, the Ryder Cup is expected to inject £100 million into the Scottish ­economy during the week of the tournament alone.

In all, more than 250,000 spectators from all over the globe are expected to visit ­Gleneagles to watch the event in two years’ time, with millions more able to watch the action on television.