Milngavie woman elected as first Sikh MSP to the Scottish Parliament

Scottish Conservative West Scotland MSP Pam Gosal said: “I am so proud. The new Scottish Parliament will rightly reflect the diverse nation Scotland is in this day and age and it is wonderful to be able to have played a part in helping to achieve this.

“The support I have had from the Sikh and other ethnic minority communities has meant that I have had the confidence and encouragement to stand for Parliament and ultimately besuccessful.

“I’m equally delighted to be joined by my fellow BAME candidate Sandesh Gulhane on the Scottish Conservative benches.

“We hope that by being elected to serve as MSPs that we are showing that people from ethnic minority communities can be elected to Parliament and make a positive difference for people.”

MS Gosal, who was beaten by the SNP in the constituency seat of Clydebank and Milngavie, and came third after Labour, was elected as an MSP through the regional list.

She is now appealing to local people to make use of the recently opened walk-in testing centre at Milngavie rail station car park.

While Pam says she is encouraged by East Dunbartonshire's progress in fighting the virus, she says the UK Government has provided another valuable tool to help identify any positive cases.

She is also pleased that the centre is walk-through making it easier for people who don't drive to get tested.

Ms Gosal added: "East Dunbartonshire have made excellent progress in suppressing the virus which has been welcome to see.

“However, as we've seen in other areas, we can't drop our guard when it comes to fighting Covid.

"That is why it is great to see the UK Government open a walk-through testing centre at Milngavie train station.

"This will be another critical tool in identifying any positive cases and is available right here on our doorstep.

"With it being a walk-in site, it is easily accessible for those who don't drive as well.mThe UK Government are carrying out the bulk of testing across Scotland in order to help defeat the virus as well as a successful vaccination rollout.

“I would encourage anyone in Milngavie who develops Covid symptoms to make use of this new testing centre in their local community straight away."