Business leaders in a Highland community have established an office in a cow field and invited a Scottish Government minister to work in it for a day.

Members of the Finderne Development Trust in Moray have issued the invitation to Scottish Government Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands to “highlight broadband roll-out problems”.

Pery Zakeri, development manager of the Finderne Development Trust, said: “Working from a desk in a field in the heart of our rural community will soon let Mr Wheelhouse get a taste of the everyday reality for those trying to run a business or home school kids in this part of the world.”

She added: “We’ve even seen people forced to leave the area because they can’t continue with university studies while living in their family homes because the connectivity is so bad.”

She added: “There are days when you’d be more successful getting a usable connection by trying to plug your phone or computer into a turnip, or maybe a passing cow. It’s the same story for remote and rural communities across Scotland.”