Exclusive:One of Holyrood's youngest MSPs tells of homelessness ordeal as a teenager
Lloyd Melville shares his own experience of Scotland’s homelessness crisis after spending months in temporary accommodation as a teenager
At last month’s election, Lloyd Melville became one of Scotland’s youngest MSPs after winning the Angus South seat for the SNP.
But a decade ago, he was left homeless as a teenager and spent months living in temporary accommodation.
He is now hoping to bring his own experience of Scotland’s homelessness crisis to frontline politics in the Scottish Parliament.
“It was a complete disruption of everything that I had come to know,” Mr Melville told The Scotsman.
“There was a huge amount of uncertainty and anxiety, as you would expect, and it was a challenge because I was 15 and still at school.
“I was really lucky to be supported by my family, because without them I couldn’t have got through my exams.”
He spent around six months in temporary accommodation and was then given a property through Angus Council’s homeless policy - in the area he now represents.
He said: “It is difficult not to bring your own experience into this but first of all we need to increase the housing stock and be more innovative.”
Mr Meville was inspired to get involved in politics after watching the Brexit referendum results coming in.
He said: “That’s my earliest political memory. I woke up, looked at the map, and it was clear Scotland had voted to remain and had been taken out of the EU despite that very clear decision.
“To me, that didn’t add up, so that’s how I got interested in politics.
“I did some research and reached the conclusion that independence is the best future for Scotland, so I joined the SNP on my 16th birthday and threw myself into campaigning from the 2017 election.”
At just 25-years-old, he is younger than devolution and the Scottish Parliament. He said that it is a “privilege and a responsibility” to carry on the work of those who achieved devolution in Scotland by fighting for Scottish independence.
“We need to make it work and we need to protect it,” he said. “For me as an SNP MSP, you would expect me to say my responsibility is also to complete the journey of devolution through independence.
“We need to make parliament work because I have been clear that I don't think this parliament goes far enough to recognise the democratic ambitions of the people of Scotland.
“There have been some real limits on this parliament by the UK Government, whether that’s through the Internal Market Act or using a section 35 order to block legislation.
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“But this parliament also needs to do better to get things done and make improvements to people’s lives.
“There is a real appetite out there for political parties to work together to get things done - the parties who collaborated with the Scottish Government grew in numbers at the last election.”
Mr Melville will also be sitting on Holyrood’s transport committee, and said issues like local bus services, Loganair services and the A9 dualling will be some of the top issues he wants to work on over the next five years in the Scottish Parliament - and said he will be looking for re-election in 2031.
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