She took the oath of allegiance in the House of Commons in Gaelic , and joined the Liberal Democrats on the party 's formation in 1988 . She increased her majority in the next two general elections , gaining the confidence of the voters in her scattered constituency of peninsulas and islands . She was a Liberal Democrat spokesman on transport and rural development from 1987 to 1988 , on women 's issues from 1988 to 1994 , and on Scotland from 1988 to 1997 . She was an advocate of home rule for Scotland and the promotion of and development of the Scottish Gaelic language . She was also chairm of the Scottish Liberal Party from 1992 to 1993 . She was appointed a member of the panel of chairmen by Speaker Betty Boothroyd in her last term in the Commons , from 1997 to 2001 . She supported the campaigns to end submarine operations of the Royal Navy and United States Navy in the Firth of Clyde , '' citation needed '' to hold another inquiry into the Chinook crash on the Mull of Kintyre in 1994 , and the successful bid for the residents of Gigha to buy their own island
Chinook crash
1994 Scotland RAF Chinook crash
Ray Michie