They Serve Us: Ayrshire's MPs: (4) Bill Grant

Grant examines a post box in his constituency

From an objective point of view, the best of the present Ayrshire contingent of MPs is Bill Grant, the Conservative MP for the Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock UK Parliamentary constituency. He was elected in the 2017 General Election, unseating the SNP's Corri Wilson, whose reputation had been shredded by expenses scandals. 

Grant was born on the 14th of August, 1951, the son of a miner in the Doon Valley. He did not go to university and became a fireman, serving for 31 years, before retiring as a deputy commander in the Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Service. He then served as a Justice of the Peace on Ayr District Court. He is married with two kids.

Grant was first elected as a Conservative councillor on South Ayrshire Council at the 2007 council elections at the age of 56, and re-elected in 2012. As a councillor, Grant took a "hands-on" approach, participating in litter clean-ups on the weekend. 

His respectable working class roots were a big asset, and were no doubt a big factor in his selection as a Tory parliamentary candidate for this not-at-all Conservative seat. Grant was first selected in 2010, when he lost to Labour's Sandra Osbourne, and again in 2017, when he won the seat with a relatively narrow majority of 2,774 votes. 

Since becoming an MP Grant has been an unremarkable but generally hard-working MP, often attending debates, speaking, and voting. Perhaps the most newsworthy thing about him is that he confronted a violent Irish thug in an Ayr pub and made a citizen's arrest:

As reported by the Daily Record: 

A brave MP restrained a violent attacker on the ground while waiting for police to arrive at an Ayr pub.

Hero Bill Grant, 66, came to the rescue after a man swung punches at the Billy Bridges landlord.

The former firefighter waded in to perform a citizens arrest after Irish man Johnny McElroy kicked off.

Landlord Jim Wardrop tried to usher the troublemaker out of the door but he refused to leave. The 38-year-old from Donegal then began aiming blows at Jim - prompting Bill and other customers to rush to his defence.

On the thorny question of Brexit, Grant was originally a Remainer, but then supported ex-Prime Minister Theresa May's deal, and believes that it is important for the Conservative Party to deliver Brexit out of respect for the decision of the people. 

In the recent leadership election, Grant, like many Scottish Tory MPs, supported Michael Gove.

Update: In September 2019, Grant announced that he would be standing down at the next election.