Carluke councillor looks back on four decades in politics

The incumbent in the Whitehill ward has to step down for family reasons and, with a majority of just 17 to defend, they’ll need to be careful or face losing the seat.

Standing at the back of the hall is 28-year-old mother-of-two Eileen Logan. She’s not intending to stand, she has her eye on teacher training.

But as fate would have it, party members decided to put her forward because everyone in the town knew her and her family.

Fast-forward 40 years and after spells as Provost of both Clydesdale and South Lanarkshire, Councillor Logan has been given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Local Government Information Unit (LGiU).

“People don’t believe this but this is the gospel truth. If ever I write a book, I think I’ll call it, not the reluctant politician but The Bemused Politician,” Eileen says of her selection as a candidate.

“I was brought up in a house that was interested in politics. My mum and my dad were always members of the Labour Party and they always worked at elections putting out leaflets and stuff like that.

“When you became an age you joined the Labour Party and away you go. I was never meant to be standing for local government.

“I thought, the majority had dropped to 17, I’ll maybe no win this but there you are. 11 elections later, I’m still here. I didn’t set out to become a councillor, it just happened.”

Many things have changed in the last four decades with people becoming more reliant on computers, email and mobile phones.

“When I started computers weren’t even there or thereabouts,” said Eileen.

“I had a notepad, a pencil or a pen and a Rolodex with all my customers and enquires.

“When you went to the office to a ask a question, they went to a filing cabinet and pulled the draw out, brought out a file and away you went from there.

“As a gift, my mum and dad bought me an electric typewriter to do letters and things and that was state of the art at the time.”

Some things, however, never change.

Eileen added: “Basically what hasn’t changed is people’s problems. The way you deal with the problem might be a different thing now.

“For 40 years, problems have never changed. People still need you for your day to day things. Big things, wee things, all sorts of things.

“The nature of your work hasn’t changed. The nature of how you conduct your work has dramatically.”

In 1988, Eileen was elected as the last Provost of Clydesdale serving eight years in the role before local government reorganisation in 1996 saw South Lanarkshire Council established.

She would later serve as Provost of South Lanarkshire from 2012 to 2017.

Further reforms in 2007 saw Carluke Whitehill amalgamated into the new Clydesdale West ward and the introduction of the single transferable vote system.

Eileen said: “I was always very lucking, being elected into my own ward. It became the parish of Carluke as opposed to one part of Carluke.

“It’s not really changed. For people coming in new, they don’t know any different but for me, I know a lot of people, I go to a lot of things so it didn’t change really much for me.

“I’m an adapter, I’m very good at adapting. One day it was that, the next day it was this and you just put your head down and get on with it.

“To be fair, I think it’s been quite good because it’s brought you into areas that you wouldn’t necessarily be. You were meeting new folk from Law, Braidwood, Crossford that you wouldn’t normally have met.”

Now, and still working for her constituents whether that be remotely in Carluke or at council HQ in Hamilton, Eileen is thankful to her friends and neighbours who have turned out, poll after poll to re-elect her.

“It has always been an absolute pleasure.

“I never take anything for granted, that I’m entitled to win a seat or I’m entitled to anything.

“I’ve always worked hard and never sat back and though: ‘Och, it’s alright. I’ll be alright’.

“They’ve put trust in me and I’ve tried to work hard and stand up for folk.

“I’m always grateful that people have taken the time to come out, looked for my name and put a cross beside it.”