It wasn't the most high profile announcement this government has made but its one that could prove vitally important to communities across the Highlands.

This past week the Department of Transport confirmed that that the Post Office Network has won the contract to provide expanded DVLA services from next April.

For those of us who have been fighting for years to protect the future of the post office that is great news. And, hopefully it will be just the first in a series of steps aimed at turning round its fortunes.

Since coming into government as part of the coalition I have worked with my LibDem colleagues to halt the Labour Party's programme of post office closures. I was delighted to be able to secure 1.3 billion of investment in the Post Office network in 2010 - money to be invested in the network's long term future.

I know that in many parts of my constituency they provide not just over the counter services but a focal point for the local population to keep in touch with what is happening in their neighbourhood. They are a hugely important local link, and a lifeline service for many pensioners and others.

Often the post office or subpostoffice is also an area's only shop and is crucial to its survival. Not just in rural communities but also in urban areas in and around Inverness the post office is part of the fabric of our society.

That is why I am determined that we will succeed in our policy of making our post offices the first point of call for members of the public looking to use a wide range of government services.

They must become government's 'front offices' in towns and villages throughout the highlands.

Over the past few months I have received hundreds of postcards from concerned constituents on behalf of the Federation of Subpostmasters and expressing their fears at the potential loss of a local amenity.

Just recently I also held discussions on the issue with post masters in my constituency and in the New Year I plan to host a meeting for them with Post Office officials.

This week's announcement by the Secretary of State should go some way to reassuring them that their views are being heard in government.

But that seven year contract is just part of what is needed to safeguard the Post Office's future.

Other Government departments are currently considering how they can utilise the Post Office Network in a similar way to provide services and offer the support it needs to get back on a secure and sustainable economic footing for the future.

 

This week I was frustrated to read that, yet again, the SNP at Holyrood is to put the transport needs of the Highlands aside while promising investment in the Central Belt.

This time it is a commitment to a high speed rail link to cut journey times between Edinburgh and Glasgow to less than half an hour by 2024.

There are no costs, no detailed plans, no clue yet as to whether it will use new or existing stations and lines.

Yet the Deputy First Minister told a conference in Glasgow that it will happen and they are entering talks with local authorities which she says will 'see this vision realised - a Glasgow to Edinburgh high speed line that can connect with the network from England.'

There appears to be no part for the Highlands in this vision.

While we wait for the promised improvements to tackle the A9 - Scotland's deadliest road - the SNP is making no attempt to help those who would rather leave their cars at home or for whom driving is not an option or to make it easier to get goods carried north by heavy lorries off our road and onto the railway.

Last year I offered the SNP £50 million pounds of UK Government money to upgrade the sleeper services to London - a vital link for the highlands which desperately needs improvement - if the SNP matched that amount. Following that offer, there is now an investment plan in place, and the faster it is delivered the better.

I also hear regular complaints from my constituents that the SNP in Edinburgh is doing nothing to improve the bus services in the highlands.

When the UK Government's high speed rail link between Scotland and England is complete we in the highlands will need an improved rail and road infrastructure if we are to reap possible benefits.

In the Highlands the long-term economic and social returns from improvements in our transport links are stronger than anywhere else: that why we need to be at the front of the queue, not left behind.

 

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