Gregg Brain has had quite the upheavel in his life the last 5 years.
The UK government had a special post study work scheme (Highland homecoming plan) to attract high skilled students to come to the rural areas in the Scottish Highlands.
The scheme entailed that the students after graduation would have 2 years to find a job.
This really appealed to the family as it was a lifelong dream to come and live in Scotland.
The dream was partly based on the fact that the ancestry of both their families went back as far as the clearances.
After a lot of deliberation the Brain family decided to take the jump and sold everything they owned in Australia and in 2011 they arrived in Dingwall.
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Kathryn Brain took up studies which resulted in her graduating with a dual-major degree in Scottish History & Archaeology.
While Kathryn studied, Gregg worked full-time, and their son Lachlan attended Gaelic medium education.
However In 2012, a year after they arrived and only 2 years after their visa was granted, the Home Office retroactively changed the rules.
This change meant that the visa pathway that provided fresh graduates with a reasonable chance to transition to a work visa was removed.
Instead of the tier 1 visa they expected , they had to apply under a Tier 2 visa system which requires a job offer based on a financial threshold.
The families resolve was pushed to the limits by the home office, who confiscated their passports, forced the family to resign from their hard-won jobs and denied them the right to take up any other work.
This resulted in their landlord evicting them from their home.
The whole family had a very anxious time as the Home office started the deportation process.
This resulted in a successful one-year visa application, effectively granting a stay of execution until September 2017. Being the subject of a situation where the Westminster government was driving to deport actively contributing members of the Scottish community has served to reinforce Gregg’s long-held belief that Westminster is not acting in Scotland’s interests. He therefor beliefs it is in Scotlands best intrest to become independent.
Although not an experienced public speaker, Gregg is passionate about Scotland and its future, and is proud to take part in Scotland’s first international independence rally.
The result was a high-profile media covered battle with the Home Office against the backdrop of the Brexit referendum.
Due to a groundswell campaign by their Dingwall community, the MP from Ross, Sky and Lochaber and even the first minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon, the attention of the world’s media was attracted.
The Home office caved and granted the family an extension to remain. After an eleventh hour appeal, during which time numerous companies offered them jobs, Kathryn was offered a job with MacDonald Hotels & Resort Group in Aviemore.
The hotel appointed Kathryn to the role of Visitor Centre Museum Curator, in which role she has to research and establish a visitor centre at the resort, which is planned to open shortly.
