Both are by way of celebrating their contribution.

Whereas probably everyone in Ross-shire would have known of Bill McLaren, virtually no one will have heard of Nan Lyle, but she had every bit as big an impact on the lives of many, many young people in her home town as Bill did.

The church, for her funeral, was every bit as packed as that for Bill.

She was a remarkable woman, who gave a lifetime to young people through, in her case, the scouting movement. Even in her 80s (a young octogenarian), she attended and supported the local scouts. Her passing made me reflect fondly on what she did for me and my generation, but also on all the other Nan Lyles, across every community in Scotland.

These are the legion of committed people who give freely of their time to provide opportunities for the young people of those communities. Ross-shire is full of them, for example, the scout, guide and BB leaders; the football, athletic and judo coaches; the feisean, dance and drama organisers; the chess club tutors; the youth cafe and youth club leaders.

There will be an almost endless list of opportunities for our young people being created by a truly remarkable group of dedicated adults willing to help.

For many it is a struggle, there can be difficulty in getting all the leaders needed.

The modern, and necessary, regulatory measures, can seem daunting. But, for those who do give the commitment, there can hardly be praise high enough.

Without such people active in all our communities we would be so much poorer as a society, our young peoples' development so much less. So, at a personal level, I pay tribute to the Nan Lyle I knew and who helped make such a difference for me and my contemporaries, and to all the Nan Lyles, wherever they are in Ross-shire, whatever the contribution they are making through their special interest, I also pay tribute. Your work may all too often go unsung, but it is of a value I certainly appreciate, as I know many others do too.

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THE crofting Bill is now well into its scrutiny phase in Parliament. Crofting still plays a large part in the life of Ross-shire, and is set to do so well into the future. Whether the current crofting Bill will help or hinder that future remains a moot point. The great advantage of the scrutiny process is that it brings issues to the surface and exposes them to detailed questioning.

So far the committee has taken evidence in four formal sessions. Two have been in Parliament and two out and about in the Highlands and Islands. Visits to the Uists, to Caithness and Sutherland, and to Shetland, as well as pages and pages of written evidence, have helped throw light on a number of inadequacies in the current proposals. Overall there seems little enthusiasm for the Bill's main provisions, and certainly no sense it will somehow, miraculously, "save crofting". Indeed, many think it will simply add to the already great complexity of crofting, and create more bureaucracy.

It is also going to add costs for crofters, with the new Crofting Commission given powers to charge crofters for being regulated. It seems a very odd proposition to me that crofters should be charged fees to register their croft, or to apply to the Commission for various permissions. They are simply complying with a regulatory system imposed on them by various and successive Parliament's, so why should they pay.

Nicola Sturgeon admitted to Parliament that she had made a number of mistakes in writing a letter on behalf of a convicted fraudster.

Her admission was delivered with good grace and was exactly the right thing to do. It was a good parliamentary performance, recognised across the political spectrum.

The really striking thing was the contrast between her performance and that of the boss, one Alex Salmond. Virtually everyone in parliament, including those on his own side, (privately) recognise he simply would not have been able to rise to the occasion the way his Deputy did. Belligerence and bombast seem to be the only tools in his approach to politics. That, together with the incredibly stupid arguments he raised in defence of his Deputy, which she then openly admitted were not sustainable, makes one begin to wonder for just how much longer he will be regarded as an asset by his Party. Something decisive happened on that front last week. It will be interesting to see how it plays out - happy days!

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