From cutting the grass at Levengrove to the House of Lords - Baron McFall's journey

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The speaker of the House of Lords has opened up on his journey, from being a teenager cutting the grass at Levengrove Park, to holding one of the most prestigious positions in British politics.John McFall, now Baron McFall of Alcluith, served as Dumbarton’s MP between 1987 and 2010, before moving into the House of Lords.He was elected as Lord Speaker in 2021, but revealed that his first role in adult life was one that was far less high-profile.Speaking during a visit to Levengrove Park, Baron McFall said: “Levengrove has been a feature of my whole life, coming here as a boy to play football, putting, playing tennis and having lazy summer nights with my friends.“My parents had a paper shop nearby and the superintendent of the parks department was a regular customer.

After I left school at 15 he offered me a job and lo and behold the first job was digging the flower beds and trimming the grass.”Reflecting on his achievements during his 23 years in office, the former St Patrick’s pupil highlighted the introduction of Loch Lomond and the Trossachs as Scotland’s first National Park – and the redevelopment of Lomondgate as industry moved away from the town.He continued: “I was very much aware of the deindustrialisation that has taken place in our community since the 1960s, so we had to strive to keep employment here to assist the welfare of the area and to ensure continued economic prosperity for the citizens.“I was very conscious of the need to regenerate the area.

There was devastation in the area.“We had the whisky industry, but we had to do more to engage and regenerate the place.“Lomondgate is a very successful economic redevelopment model, from the ashes of the closure of the J&B bottling plant to one where there’s now