Latest News –  Martin Whitfield MSP

Martin Whitfield MSP has attended a special St Andrew's Day Saltire Service at Athelstaneford Parish Church to mark the 60th anniversary of the Saltire Memorial. The Scottish Flag Trust has also launched a £300,000 fundraising appeal for replace the memorial, which is now beyond repair, with a new Saltire Monument at Athelstaneford, the birthplace of the Saltire. Designed by award-winning architects Simpson and Brown with artist Tim Chalk, the proposed monument will feature a world map, etched in stone, linking Scotland to the many Saltire and St Andrew Societies around the world. Martin Whitfield MSP said: "I'm grateful to have [...]

Martin Whitfield MSP has joined Douglas Alexander MP at the Haddington Tesco store to support East Lothian Foodbank's Christmas appeal as part of its annual Winter Food Collection. The parliamentarians were invited by Tesco to join local foodbank volunteers at the store as part of its weekend collection to boost the charity's supplies for emergency food parcels during the winter period. Speaking after the visit, Martin Whitfield MSP said: "It was great to visit Tesco's Haddington store to back the Winter Food Collection and thank the volunteers from Trussell and the Foodbank. "I also want to thank all the local [...]

Martin Whitfield MSP has hosted a reception at Holyrood in association with the UK Accreditation Service. The event, titled 'The Societal Benefits of Accreditation and Standards', brought together around 100 key stakeholders from across Scottish Government, local authorities, regulators, industry and the third sector to explore how accreditation and standards support consumer protection, innovation and public confidence. It included short presentations from the partner organisations and a case study, with the rest of the evening designed for informal networking. Commenting afterwards, Martin Whitfield MSP said: "I was delighted to host this important reception in association with the UK Accreditation Service. [...]

Martin Whitfield MSP joined volunteers at the unveiling of the Community Connections Memory Collage at North Berwick Library. In 2024, the charity, which works to combat social isolation and loneliness in the North Berwick Coastal area, commenced a year-long legacy project to create an incredible memory collage with people in the community through a series of workshops. The finished collage is more than a creative display - it’s a symbol of togetherness, understanding, and the healing power of shared memory, conversation and connection. It was on display in North Berwick Phone Booths on North Berwick High Street at the start [...]

Martin Whitfield MSP has given his backing to a campaign against compulsory redundancies at the University of Edinburgh. Organised by UCU Scotland in partnership with other trade unions, the campaign is part of the unions wider #StopTheCuts campaign opposing cuts in Scottish Higher Education. Earlier in the week, Mr Whitfield raised the issue of redundancies at Edinburgh and other universities during topical questions and challenged the HE Minister on what the Scottish Government is doing to tackle the funding crisis in our universities. Martin Whitfield MSP said: "I'm standing with UCU Scotland and other unions to support the action they [...]

Martin Whitfield MSP is backing the Fostering Network’s 2025 #TickTheBox campaign which officially begins today. The UK-wide #TickTheBox campaign encourages people with care experience to ‘tick the box’ on their UCAS application to say they have spent time in care, so they can get the support they may need, to help them enter and thrive at college or university. From 2008 to 2022, the number of people ticking the box more than doubled, but there is still a long way to go. In Scotland, the latest data shows that less than three quarters (72.4%) of looked after pupils were in [...]