AN TIR, AN CANAN, 'SNA DAOINE –
THE LAND, THE LANGUAGE, THE PEOPLE

The West Highland Free Press was founded in 1972 as a left-wing weekly newspaper, but with the principal objective of providing its immediate circulation area with the service which a local paper is expected to provide.

The paper’s priorities are perhaps best summarised in the Gaelic slogan on its masthead: "An Tir, an Canan ’sna Daoine — The Land, the Language, the People". It is a slogan borrowed from the Highland Land League which, in the late 19th century, fought the crucial battle to win security of tenure for crofters.

The land issue is at the heart of the Free Press’s politics. Down to the present day, where private landlordism persists, the fundamental conflict of interest also remains and is reflected in many of the most celebrated stories which the paper has reported.

For the first time in decades there is a newspaper in the Highlands which actively opposes the grotesque maldistribution of land ownership that still characterises the region, and stands up for the rights of local communities and individuals.

The Free Press has also championed the cause of the Gaelic language, both by giving it political support and also by publishing more written Gaelic material than any other newspaper. Over the first 25 years, enormous progress has been made in improving the state of the language, and in particular, educational provision.

In the early 1970s the idea of a single word of Gaelic appearing on roadsigns was, for instance, anathema to local authorities which were, at that time, dominated by landowners. Now bilingual or even Gaelic-only signs are taken for granted, and nobody seems to be any the worse for it.

The Free Press has reported and campaigned on stories of major environmental importance. Sometimes these campaigns have been successful. On other issues, like the construction of a high-toll, private-enterprise bridge to Skye, the view of the paper -- and of the local community -- has been overruled from afar.

The team of columnists will compare with any in the land, while there are always news stories and features of much more than local interest.

The West Highland Free Press is available extensively within the West Highlands and Islands and in towns and cities throughout Scotland, each Friday.