The former Lairdsland Primary School pupil scooped first prize in the Herald's Young Writer of the Year competition with her essay about Kirkintilloch.

As well as receiving a magnificent trophy and vouchers for WHSmith as her prize, Eilidh, who started Lenzie Academy this week, also got to spend a day in the Herald newsroom.

During her visit to the Herald, Eilidh got the chance to give Strathkelvin and Bearsden MSP David Whitton a grilling.

Here's Eilidh's interview with the Labour MSP...


Did you want to be a politician when you were young?

No, I didn't. I started out as a journalist working for newspapers in Dundee for a few years. I really wanted to be a sports journalist, so I could get into football matches for free. But after a few years I realised I wanted to be a politician, so I followed up on that.


What stages did you go through to become an MSP?

Well, in order to be an MSP, you need to put your name forward for it. You then go through a selection process, which is when you get picked to be a candidate. If you get enough votes from a constituency you become their MSP. That is the basic story, anyway.


Has being a politician taught you anything?

Yes. A lot of people that come to me have problems that they don't know how to handle, and I have done my best to help them because they look to me for help. By doing this I have learned to never take anything for granted.


The story I wrote was about my community - is there anything you think should change about Kirkintilloch?

I actually feel that there are a lot of things, although there is lots taking place, such as the new marina being built and the Kirkintilloch Leisure Centre which has recently had its first birthday. But I also feel that the town centre needs a lot of work and the streets, especially, should be kept clean by people.


Is there anything that my friends and I can do about our community?

Well, there certainly is a lot your age group can do for our community. I don't know if you are in any church youth groups or anything, but that is a way to help, getting involved and organised.
If there is anything that you think could help the community you could come and talk to your local MSP, like the children that thought of the new skatepark being built. They thought of it themselves and that really is a great example of what children your age can do.


You have been involved in a lot of causes over the past year - what one do you feel most strongly about?

Well, disabled parking has always been big for me, and also the 'three by three' campaign. This was about a mother named Alexis Stevenson who came to me trying to get her child into nursery on his third birthday. We started a petition and then took it to the Scottish Parliament. We are now at the second stage of the campaign.


What do you think the future of Kirkintilloch will be?

I think Kirkintilloch has a positively bright future, especially for things such as tourism. I think the new marina will be a great hit for Kirkintilloch.
I also think the Arts and Culture Centre will turn out great and hopefully the town hall will be rebuilt, so that will bring a more historical side to our town.
However, I do think that we should act a bit more on the history of Kirkintilloch.
After all, this is a town that dates right back to the Romans and we have a part of the Antonine Wall. I think we should show off a bit more that our town was associated with the Romans.


What do you plan to do in the future?

Well, hopefully I will keep working in Strathkelvin and Bearsden, because that's what I love doing. The next election for me is in 2011, so I hope that the residents here will keep me in this constituency.


What do you like about being an MSP?

There was a lady aged 86 who got moved out of her house to a new house and she had to pay a sum of money to get her phone reconnected. She didn't understand why she had to pay.
So I got involved and she doesn't have to pay the money now.
So what I really like is helping people with their problems.