Donald Campbell Dewar was a Scottish statesman and politician who served as the inaugural First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 1999 until his death in 2000. He previously served as Secretary of State for Scotland from 1997 to 1999. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Anniesland from 1978 to 2000. Dewar was also Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the equivalent seat from 1999 to 2000.
The first minister of Scotland is the head of the Scottish Government and keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. The first minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation,development and presentation of Scottish Government policy. Additional functions of the first minister include promoting and representing Scotland in an official capacity,at home and abroad.
The 2003 Scottish Parliament election was the second election of members to the Scottish Parliament. It was held on 1 May 2003 and it brought no change in terms of control of the Scottish Executive. Jack McConnell,the Labour Party MSP,remained in office as First Minister for a second term and the Executive continued as a Labour and Liberal Democrat coalition. As of 2022,it remains the last Scottish Parliament election victory for the Scottish Labour Party,and the last time the Scottish National Party lost a Holyrood election.
Jack Wilson McConnell,Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale,is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2001 to 2007. McConnell served as the Minister for Finance from 1999 to 2000 and Minister for Education,Europe and External Affairs from 2000 to 2001. He has been a Labour life peer in the House of Lords since 2010 and previously served as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Motherwell and Wishaw from 1999 to 2011.
Henry Baird McLeish is a Scottish politician,author,academic and former professional footballer who served as First Minister of Scotland from 2000 to 2001. With a term of just 1 year and 12 days,he is the shortest serving holder of that office. He served as the Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2000 to 2001.
James Robert Wallace,Baron Wallace of Tankerness,is a Scottish politician serving as a Liberal Democrat life peer in the British House of Lords since 2007 and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 2021 to 2022. He served as the Deputy First Minister of Scotland from 1999 to 2005,and during that time he served twice as acting First Minister,in 2000,in the aftermath of Donald Dewar's death and in 2001,following Henry McLeish's resignation. He was formerly Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats from 1992 to 2005 and Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords from 2013 to 2016.
Susan Catherine Deacon is a former Scottish Labour politician,and public figure who has held leadership roles across the private,public and third sectors,and in academia and national politics.
Catherine Mary Jamieson is a Scottish business director,currently a director at Kilmarnock Football Club and former politician. She served as the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2000 to 2008. She previously served in the Scottish Executive as Minister for Justice from 2003 to 2007 and Minister for Education and Young People from 2001 to 2003. Jamieson was Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Carrick,Cumnock and Doon Valley from 1999 to 2011 and was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Kilmarnock and Loudoun from 2010 to 2015.
Andy Kerr is a Scottish politician who served as Minister for Finance and Public Services from 2001 to 2004 and Minister for Health and Community Care from 2004 to 2007. A member of the Scottish Labour Party,he was Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the East Kilbride constituency from 1999 to 2011.
Thomas McCabe was a Scottish politician who served as Minister for Parliament from 1999 to 2001 and Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform from 2004 to 2007. A member of the Scottish Labour Party,he was Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Hamilton South constituency from 1999 to 2011.
Officegate was a political scandal in Scotland surrounding the unregistered expenses of the then-First Minister of Scotland,Henry McLeish,in 2001. It was the first major scandal the Scottish Parliament had faced since its reincarnation two years prior in 1999. The scandal dominated McLeish's final months in office and resulted in his resignation.
Scottish Labour is a branch section of the social democratic UK Labour Party in Scotland. From their peak of holding 56 of the 129 seats at the first Scottish parliament election in 1999,the Party has lost seats at each Holyrood election,returning 22 MSPs at the 2021 election. The party currently holds one of 59 Scottish seats in the UK House of Commons,with Ian Murray having represented Edinburgh South continuously since 2010.
Iain Cumming Gray is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2008 to 2011. He was the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the East Lothian constituency from 2007 to 2021,having previously represented Edinburgh Pentlands from 1999 to 2003. A former aid worker and teacher of mathematics and physics,Gray was first elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 as MSP for the Edinburgh Pentlands constituency,which he lost to Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party David McLetchie in 2003. Gray was returned to Holyrood in 2007 as MSP for East Lothian. Following Wendy Alexander's resignation as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party in 2008,Gray stood at the subsequent leadership election,and was elected with a 57.8% share of the vote in the second round.
David Whitton is a Scottish journalist,Labour Party politician and former Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP). He was elected to the Scottish Parliament for Strathkelvin and Bearsden in 2007,defeating the incumbent Independent MSP Jean Turner,and losing the seat at the 2011 election to Fiona McLeod of the Scottish National Party.
The Minister for Transport is a member of the Scottish Government who reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport,Net Zero and Just Transition. As a Junior Minister the post holder is not a member of the Scottish Government Cabinet.
The Cabinet Secretary for Finance,commonly referred to as the Finance Secretary,is a member of the Cabinet in the Scottish Government. The Cabinet Secretary has Ministerial responsibility for the Scottish Government's Finance Directorates.
The first McConnell government was formed by Jack McConnell on 22 November 2001 during the 1st Scottish Parliament,following Henry McLeish's resignation as First Minister of Scotland as a consequence of the Officegate scandal. The first McConnell government was a continuation of the Labour–Liberal Democrat coalition that had existed under the previous McLeish and Dewar governments. It ended on 20 May 2003 following the 2003 election to the 2nd Scottish parliament,which saw McConnell returning to office as first minister to form a second government.
Henry McLeish's term as first minister of Scotland began on 26 October 2000 when he was formally sworn into office at the Court of Session. It followed the death of Donald Dewar. McLeish served as the second First Minister and his premiership is the shortest of any officeholder. His term was dominated by his financial scandal dubbed as Officegate. The scandal resulted in McLeish's resignation on 8 November 2001.
Jack McConnell's term as first minister of Scotland began on 22 November 2001 when he was formally sworn into office at the Court of Session. It followed the resignation of Henry McLeish over the Officegate scandal. His term ended on 16 May 2007,following the defeat of the Scottish Labour Party in the 2007 Scottish Parliament election,where the Scottish National Party formed a minority government.
The 2000 Scottish Labour Party leadership election was an internal party election to choose a new leader of the Labour Party in the Scottish Parliament,and was triggered following the death of Donald Dewar,the inaugural leader and first minister of Scotland. Henry McLeish successfully defeated Jack McConnell,by 44 to 36 votes,and was subsequently appointed to office.
