Dr Steven William Welsh is a retired NHS Consultant Psychiatrist with decades of frontline service across some of Scotland’s most remote and challenging communities.

Full statement

He brings deep professional experience, strong local understanding, and a lifelong commitment to public service to his candidacy for Reform UK in his first choice constituency of Caithness, Sutherland, and Ross.

Steven began his consultant career in 1996 with the Caithness and Sutherland NHS Trust while living in Dunnet. For many years he travelled weekly to Inverness to support Highland-wide psychiatric services and take part in the regional on-call rota. He later served as a Consultant Psychiatrist with NHS Western Isles from 2007 until his retirement in 2015, providing care across the entire island chain from the Butt of Lewis to Barra.

Few candidates can claim such extensive firsthand experience across the communities of the Highlands and Islands.

Steven’s clinical training spans General Practice, Hospital based practice, General Psychiatry, and Old Age Psychiatry, giving him a broad understanding of Scotland’s healthcare challenges — particularly the pressures facing rural services, elderly care provision, recruitment shortages, and long travel distances for treatment. He believes strongly that the NHS must remain free at the point of need while being reformed to deliver faster treatment and better outcomes for patients, consistent with Reform UK’s commitment to cutting bureaucracy and eliminating waiting lists so resources reach the frontline.

Steven is proud to represent Reform UK and is passionate about the principles of family, community, and country. After decades serving patients and communities across the Highlands and Islands, he believes these values are the foundation of a strong society and should guide public policy in Scotland. He supports Reform UK’s programme to restore affordable energy, strengthen border integrity, protect freedom of speech, and ensure schools focus on education rather than ideology.

Married for over forty years with four children and three grandchildren, Steven understands firsthand the importance of stable families and resilient local communities. He believes Scotland needs a prosperous economy, reliable infrastructure, and public services that work for the people they serve — particularly in rural and island communities that are too often overlooked by central government.

With decades of experience working directly with patients and communities across the Highlands and Islands, Steven William Welsh offers informed leadership on healthcare reform and a strong local voice in Holyrood for Caithness, Sutherland, and Ross.