Graham Leadbitter | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency created |
| Majority | 1,001 (2.1%) |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Scottish National Party |
| Alma mater | Open University |
Graham Leadbitter is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Moray West,Nairn and Strathspey since 2024. [1]
Leadbitter was educated at Biggar High School,and studied computing at the Open University,where he received a diploma. Leadbitter worked as a constituency press officer for then Moray MP Angus Robertson and Moray MSP Richard Lochhead from 2001 until 2007. [2]
Leadbitter served as a Councillor for the Elgin City South ward on Moray Council from 2007 until August 2024. [3] In 2017 he has made the co-leader of the SNP grouping on the council, [4] and between 2018 and 2022 he served as council leader. From 2022 until 2024 he was a co-leader of the SNP opposition grouping on the council. [2] Leadbitter was selected as the SNP candidate for the Moray West,Nairn and Strathspey constituency in October 2023,and was elected to Parliament at the 2024 general election. [5] A by-election was held in the Elgin City South ward on 7 November 2024,and was won by Conservative candidate Elaine Kirby. [6] [7]
Moray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country,with a coastline on the Moray Firth,and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin,the area's largest town. The main towns are generally in the north of the area on the coastal plain. The south of the area is more sparsely populated and mountainous,including part of the Cairngorms National Park.
Inverness,Nairn,Badenoch and Strathspey was a constituency of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. As with all seats since 1950 it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Moray was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
The Highlands and Islands is an area of Scotland broadly covering the Scottish Highlands,plus Orkney,Shetland,and the Outer Hebrides.
The Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party often known simply as the Scottish Conservatives and colloquially as the Scottish Tories is part of the UK Conservative Party active in Scotland. It currently holds 5 of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons,31 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament,and comprises 209 of Scotland's 1,227 local councillors.
A 2006 by-election for the Moray constituency in the Scottish Parliament was held on 27 April 2006 following the death of the Scottish National Party (SNP) Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) Margaret Ewing on 21 March 2006,from breast cancer. The seat was successfully defended by the SNP's Richard Lochhead,increasing the majority over the Scottish Conservative Party by 1073 votes.
The politics of the Highland council area in Scotland are evident in the deliberations and decisions of the Highland Council,in elections to the council,and in elections to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster) and the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). In the European Parliament the area was within the Scotland constituency,which covers all of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
The 2007Moray Council Council election was held on 3 May 2007,the same day as the Scottish Parliament election. The election was the first using the eight new wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. 26 councillors were elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members,using the STV electoral system. Previously there were single-member wards which used the first past the post electoral system.
The 2012 Moray Council election was held on 3 May 2012,the same day as the other 31 local authorities in Scotland. The election used the eight wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004,with 26 councillors being elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members,using the STV electoral system.
Andrew Egan Henderson Hendry,known as Drew Hendry,is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Inverness,Nairn,Badenoch and Strathspey from 2015 until 2024,when the seat was abolished. Hendry served as the SNP's Economy Spokesperson in the House of Commons from September 2023 to May 2024.
Douglas Gordon Ross is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2020 to 2024 and as Leader of the Opposition in the Scottish Parliament from 2021 to 2024. He served as Member of the UK Parliament (MP) for Moray from 2017 to 2024. Ross currently serves as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Highlands and Islands,having been elected as a regional list MSP in 2021. He was previously MSP for the region from 2016 to 2017.
Moray Council is the local government authority for Moray council area.
There was a Scottish National Party leadership election to choose the new Depute leader of the Scottish National Party at the SNP's conference on 14–15 October 2016. The SNP's Westminster Group Leader Angus Robertson MP won the election.
The 2017 Moray Council election was held on Thursday 4 May 2017,on the same day as the 31 other local authorities in Scotland. It was the third successive Local Council election to run under the STV Electoral System. The election used the eight wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004,with 26 Councillors being elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members,using the STV electoral system - a form of proportional representation.
Elgin City South is one of the eight wards used to elect members of the Moray Council. It elects three Councillors.
Ariane Claire Burgess is a Scottish politician who has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Highlands and Islands since 2021. A member of the Scottish Greens,she has served as the Scottish Parliament's Convener of the Local Government,Housing and Planning Committee since 2021.
The 2022 Moray Council election was held on 5 May 2022,on the same day as the 31 other local authorities in Scotland. The election used the eight wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004,with 26 Councillors elected. Each ward elects either 3 or 4 members,using the STV electoral system - a form of proportional representation.
The 2022 Perth and Kinross Council election was held on 5 May 2022 on the same day as the 31 other local authorities in Scotland. The election used the 12 wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004,with 40 councillors elected. Each ward elects either 3 or 4 members - using the STV electoral system - a form of proportional representation.
Moray West,Nairn and Strathspey is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies,it was first contested at the 2024 general election,and is currently represented by Graham Leadbitter.
Speyside Glenlivet is one of the eight wards used to elect members of the Moray Council. There are 3 councillors for the area.
