For Argyll

Ray Michie, MP for Argyll and Bute from 1987 - 2001, died last night.

She stood down from Westminster in 2001, being replaced by fellow Liberal Democrat, Alan Reid. She was then made a life peer, taking the title of Baroness Michie of Gallanach, of Oban in Argyll and Bute. When she was fornally introduced to the Lords, she became the first Peer to pledge the oath of allegiance in Gaelic.

In a distinguished career she was vice-Chairman of the Scottish Liberal Party, Chairperson of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Liberal Democrat spokesperson on Scottish Affairs (a stout advocate of Home Rule for Scotland), a member of the House of Commons Select Committee on Scottish Affairs, appointed by the Speaker to the Chairman’s Panel and joint Vice-Chairperson of the Parliamentary Group on the Whisky Industry. In August 2007 she was appointed to the Scottish Broadcasting Commissin, established by the Scottish Government.

She was Vice-President of the Royal College of Speech and Language therapists, Honorary Associate of the National Council of Women of Great Britain and Honorary President of Clyde Fishermen’s Association.

She was also a member of An Comunn Gaidhealach, the National Farmers’ Union of Scotland and the Scottish Crofters’ Union; and she was a participant in the early days of the Scottish Constitutional Convention.

She was always regarded with respect and affection in Argyll and Bute for her tireless representation of the interests of her constituency and its constituents.

She will also be remembered for her dauntless efforts to secure a full Public Enquiry in the aftermath of the fatal crash in June 1994 of an RAF Chinook at Machrihanish on the Mull of Kintyre. The aircraft (Chinook ZD576) crashed into the hillside in dense fog, killing all 29 people on board (25 passengers, 4 crew). Among the passengers were almost all of the UK’s senior Northern Ireland intelligence experts. In a report on the incident, the MOD unequivocally attributed the cause of the crash to pilot error. This has never been accepted by many experts in the field, concerned by the consequences of a recent refit and about the reliability of the Chinook’s FADEC system. Nor, of course, has it been accepted by the families of the two pilots who are still fighting to restore the reputations of their sons. They will remember Ray Michie for her energetic and reasoned support for their efforts to discover the truth.

Ray Michie was born on 4th February 1934. Her father was leading Scottish Liberal MP, John Bannerman, who became Lord Bannerman of Kildonan - also a memorable forward in the Scottish Rugby team and author of the Gaelic tune, Eilidh. Ray lived in Oban – which is honoured in the title she chose. Her husband Ian, a Consultant Physician, died in 2006. She is survived by two of their three daughters.