Goodlad defends recruiting artist amid criticism over use of public funds

SHETLAND MSP Hannah Mary Goodlad has defended her constituency office recruiting an artist for a new temporary role – saying she wants to make “politics accessible to all”.

News of Goodlad’s recruitment hit the front page of the Scottish Daily Mail today (Monday), with the national newspaper leading with the headline ‘Minister to hire £11k personal artist paid for by you!’.

Goodlad, who is also Scotland’s public finance minister, is seeking an artist in residence/creative communications assistant for a fixed term from November to February next year.

It is open to Shetland-based artists of any discipline, and the aim is to contribute to and deliver projects “exploring policy areas of priority to the MSP” to support communication and engagement with constituents.

The role would also support the MSP’s engagement with local schools and community groups, while also producing materials that “convey [Goodlad’s] aims to the general public and media”.

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The role is 35 hours per week, with a full-time equivalent salary of £33,000.

Goodlad is also recruiting to another fixed-term role, which is described as a communications and policy assistant who will support the translation of digital materials into Shaetlan.

Other activities in this role include gathering data for Shaetlan language policy research, and exploring how the Scottish Languages Act would support the growth of Shaetlan locally.

This job is for 14 hours a week during November and December only, with a full-time equivalent salary of £32,000.

More information about the two job opportunities can be found via the Scottish Parliament’s jobs webpage.

The article in the Daily Mail included quotes from MSPs from the Conservatives and Reform, who said they believed the artist role was not a good use of public money and claimed it was to create “propaganda”.

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Staffing costs for MSPs are covered by Scottish Parliament expenses. In 2024/25, former Shetland MSP Beatrice Wishart’s staffing costs reached £133,791.47, with nearly £19 million in total across every MSP.

Goodlad, who was elected in May as the SNP took the Shetland seat for the first term, recently bolstered her local team with three staff members, in addition to an Edinburgh-based office manager.

Responding to criticism of the new fixed-term roles, the MSP said she has “always done things differently – I’m in politics to do things differently”.

“I certainly didn’t win the Shetland seat by sticking to the status quo,” she told Shetland News.

“Using unique forms of media communication has been the bedrock of my election campaign and my work as Shetland’s MSP, and these new roles are an important next step in this journey.

“I want to make politics accessible to all, especially those who have felt in the past that politics is not for them.”

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Goodlad also said that arts, culture and the Shaetlan language have never just been something ‘nice to have’ in Shetland.

Calling them mainstays in Shetland life, she added: “They are a way in which Shetlanders reflect their unique history and identity.

“Arts and culture are also major elements of the Shetland economy, with wool week, traditional music festivals, film festivals and exhibitions, and we are all backing wir bid [for Lerwick to become the UK’s town of culture] for 2028.

“Reflecting this in our political sphere would make complete sense to Shetlanders, and I’m delighted that we’re able to include this sector in the make up of our team.”

The Tax­Payers’ Alliance was also among the voices of criticism, with the campaign group’s Benjamin Elks saying it looked like “little more than tax­payer funded political self-indulgence”.