Meeting of the Parliament 02 April 2025
I have a memory, as many of us do, of being cajoled into a committee room during our lunch break to don a bright pink feather boa. In my case, I am pretty sure that there were some pink pearls, too. There is much photographic evidence of that. It was all for a good cause and in support of the wear it pink campaign. I say to the First Minister that some of us needed less persuading than others to do that. Why is that? Because you cannot take yourself too seriously for a good cause.
It was a fun way to highlight a very serious issue. Does that not sum up Christina McKelvie perfectly? She was a fun person who took her passions incredibly seriously, like when she and I marched arm in arm at the 2018 Edinburgh pride event, or when she reached out to me immediately after First Minister’s questions to arrange a meeting after I had raised the issue of drug deaths in my own region.
Christina was always proud to work across the chamber on issues where there was a shared passion. It was her fearless support and campaigning for the TIE campaign back in 2016 that I remember. Her lobbying efforts helped that campaign gain cross-party support, including from many Conservatives. Her endless passion for equality was, and still is, something that I hold dear. She once said to me in the Parliament bar after a mutually difficult day, “You’re no bad for a Tory.” [Laughter.] I think that, in our mind’s eye, we can all hear her voice in that phrase. It was perhaps because of the similarity of our roots in life that I took that as a massive compliment.
After another mutually difficult day, Christina also said to me, “Jamie, you can only do your best and be proud of your achievements.” Colleagues, what more can you ask for in life? Do your best and be proud of your achievements. I hope that Christina’s family are proud of her today. If I had to sum her up in a single word, that word would be “fun”. Is that not a lesson in life for all of us? Be passionate, be decent, but enjoy your life. I make a promise to those who are grieving her loss today that there are plenty of us left here in the Parliament who will try to keep the flames of her many passions alight. [Applause.]
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