A MAN from Ayr who has campaigned to save the Station Hotel has put his name forward as a candidate in this year’s local elections.

David Ramsay, 57, grew up in Masonhill and now hopes to represent the people of Ward 4, which incorporates Kincaidston, Masonhill, Forehill and Holmston.

The scientist and engineer has spent his working life in the energy sector, working with budgets of £65million at oil and gas companies.

When he returned to South Ayrshire in 2018 after spending some years away for work he was “shocked and disappointed to see the decline and decay in the town I have always called home”.

The biggest emblem of that degradation is the Station Hotel. David produced a damning 33-page response to the feasibility study on the future options for the hotel, which was published last year.

The former Belmont Academy pupil has an undergraduate honours degree in Applied Physics with Solid State Electronics, a masters degree in Petroleum Engineering and a Masters degree in Business Administration specialising in Planning, Strategy and Finance.

His first job was as a 15-year-old boy on the back of the Old Tolls Creamery’s large diesel truck starting at 4.30am and finishing at 8.15am delivering heavy glass milk bottles all over Ayr East and Ayr West.

David said he felt he had to become involved in local politics after watching the town that he loves enter “terminal decline”. He told the Advertiser: “My home town and county is in terminal decline and I believe the party system is broken and cannot deliver or do the right thing for Ayrshire and it’s residents, so I realised I had to stand to bring about change rather than complain on the sidelines outside SAC.”I need to be inside to shake it up and bring about change with more like minded independents.”

He does not believe there is a place in the town hall for party politics and will be standing as an independent.

“I am free from the shackles of party politics that has paralysed SAC and left the people of South Ayrshire forgotten contrary to the SAC motto ‘Ne’re forget the people’,” said David.

He added: “I am not seeking position to be a compliant nice guy, I’m going there to bring about change and call out bad management and administration and set things right with full intention to put South Ayrshire on an upward trajectory.”

o place for party politics in town hall. We need proper management of South Ayrshire with delivery of what’s needed here, locally, with significant improvement expected and demanded by the honest men and women of Ayrshire. I ask the people of Ayr East and South Ayrshire to break free of party politics and send the message - CHANGE.”

The Advertiser asked David how his background has prepared him for the role of councillor.

He answered: “I have the business experience and acumen of large complex organisations and also the experience of small startup companies.

“I have engineered, managed and operated complex offshore and onshore energy projects often at the billion dollar scale. I have extensive and broad commercial experience. I have held position as an economic analyst for investment decisions including asset acquisitions and corporate acquisition along with being trained in advanced project economics and risk weighted financial modelling.

“I have studied accounts on my MBA and had accountants report to me in various roles. I have had training and experience regarding corruption and fraud identification and avoidance. I have overseen and been involved in the specification, tendering, procurement, construction and installation of major projects through to small standalone projects.

“I am a qualified HSE manager for oil and gas in Norway and implemented a complete safety management system from scratch in 9 months in Stavanger for a new entrant company. I have prepared for, contributed and participated in boardroom meetings, committee meetings and other group meetings requiring analysis and persuasion toward logical value driven agreed outcomes. I can think for myself, I can grasp complex issues and articulate solutions. As a 25 year old drilling rig superintendent I stood my ground alone against the Bedouin truck drivers in Yemen with guns in my face and negotiated a successful agreed outcome to a strike, SAC will not intimidate me or swamp me in complexity I am older and wiser and more able than when I was 25.

“I believe and practice honesty, integrity and decency and I will speak up and stand up for what is right for Ayrshire.”