Emma has shared information from the Scottish Government on the Asian Hornet following a meeting with local bee experts.  The local representative is calling for the public to educate themselves on the dangers posed to local bee populations and teach themselves how to spot this insect and tell it apart from native species. The Asian [...]

Highlands & Islands MSP Emma Roddick this week heard from the John Muir Trust on its community projects in the areas around Lochinver and Assynt on a guided visit in the Culag Woods.   Ms Roddick was shown around the community-managed woodland by a team from the John Muir Trust as she continued her busy recess [...]

Highlands & Islands MSP Emma Roddick has been getting out in nature, visiting the Corrimony nature reserve this week. Managed by the RSPB, the 150-hectare nature reserve is comprised of open moorland, conifer plantations, woodland, wetlands, and mountain habitats and is a popular spot for bird lovers. Ms Roddick was shown around the reserve as [...]

Highlands and Islands MSP Emma Roddick has welcomed the news that three projects in Orkney are to benefit from the Scottish Government’s Hydrogen Innovation Scheme. First Minister Humza Yousaf announced the £7 million scheme, which will support 32 projects across Scotland, whilst addressing delegates at the All-Energy conference in Glasgow this week. Following the announcement, [...]

Highlands & Islands MSP Emma Roddick has recently visited Nairn’s new zero-waste refill shop, the Highland Weigh. The Highlands-based social enterprise, which opened its shop in late November last year, offers a range of sustainable foods and household products. Commenting, Emma Roddick said: “It is really fantastic to see a zero-waste approach being offered in [...]

Highlands & Islands MSP Emma Roddick has welcomed new guidance for bird keepers on preventing the spread of avian influenza. Ms Roddick asked the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, Mairi Gougeon, to provide detail on methods identified to help protect poultry from the recent outbreak of avian influenza. In response, Ms Gougeon assured [...]

Emma Roddick MSP attended a public meeting in Invermoriston to discuss the Scottish Government's proposals for a Land Reform Bill, led by Minister for Environment and Land Reform, Mairi McAllan. Roddick commended Ms McAllan on social media for creating space for conversations around the Land Reform Bill so early in the process, explaining that this [...]

Highlands and Islands MSP Emma Roddick visited the Libertie Project this week during the Highland Climate Festival, taking part in a family-friendly event at their premises on Denny Street which aimed to share sustainable growing and cooking skills.  The Inverness-based project, which mainly deals with digital skills and tackling digital exclusion, also got local kids [...]

Emma Roddick has today highlighted the need to find balance in achieving net-zero whilst also not pushing island communities further into fuel poverty.  The Highlands and Islands MSP expressed her support for Scottish Government plans to achieve carbon-neutral status in the Isles whilst also sharing concerns on how this could be achieved fairly. Commenting she [...]

Speaking in the Scottish Parliament last week, Highlands and Islands MSP Emma Roddick urged the UK Government to take action on the effects of post-Brexit trade deals on new entrants to Scotland’s farming sector. She highlighted recent comments by the NFU President, Minette Batters, who described them as “really bad trade deals for the UK”. [...]