The politics of Scotland operate within the constitution of the United Kingdom,of which Scotland is a country. Scotland is a democracy,being represented in both the Scottish Parliament and the Parliament of the United Kingdom since the Scotland Act 1998. Most executive power is exercised by the Scottish Government,led by the First Minister of Scotland,the head of government in a multi-party system. The judiciary of Scotland,dealing with Scots law,is independent of the legislature and the Scottish Government. Scots law is primarily determined by the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Government shares some executive powers with the Scotland Office,a British government department led by the Secretary of State for Scotland.
Douglas Garven Alexander is a British politician who has served as Minister of State for Trade Policy and Economic Security since 2024,having previously held the role from 2004 to 2005. A member of the Labour Party,he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Lothian East since 2024. He was previously MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South,formerly Paisley South,from 1997 to 2015 and served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster,Scottish Secretary,Transport Secretary and International Development Secretary in the cabinets of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
Caroline Louise Flint is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Don Valley from 1997 to 2019. A member of the Labour Party,she attended the Cabinet as Minister for Housing and Planning in 2008 and Minister for Europe from 2008 to 2009.
James Francis Murphy is a Scottish former politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2014 to 2015 and Secretary of State for Scotland from 2008 to 2010. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for East Renfrewshire,formerly Eastwood,from 1997 to 2015. He identifies as a social democrat and has expressed support for a foreign policy of Western interventionism. He has been described as being on the political right of the Labour Party.
Thomas Harris is a British journalist and former politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow South,formerly Glasgow Cathcart,from 2001 to 2015. A former member of Scottish Labour,he left the party in August 2018. Since 2021 he has been lead non-executive director of the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and Advocate General for Scotland.
Ann McKechin is a former British Labour Party politician and was Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Maryhill from 2001 until 2005 and Glasgow North from 2005 to 2015. She was a junior minister under Gordon Brown before becoming a member of Shadow Cabinet of Ed Miliband. She lost her seat to the Scottish National Party in the landslide at the 2015 general election.
Michael John Martin,Baron Martin of Springburn,was a Scottish politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons between 2000 and 2009. A member of the Labour Party prior to becoming speaker,he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Springburn from 1979 to 2005 and for Glasgow North East until 2009. He was elected as Speaker of the House of Commons in 2000,remaining in the office for nine years until his involuntary resignation in 2009.
Margaret Patricia Curran is a Scottish Labour Party politician. She served in the British House of Commons as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow East from 2010 to 2015 and was Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland from 2011 until 2015. She was previously the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Baillieston from 1999 to 2011,and held a number of posts within the Scottish Executive,including Minister for Parliamentary Business,Minister for Social Justice and Minister for Communities.
Glasgow East is a constituency of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament,located in the city of Glasgow,Scotland. It elects one Member of Parliament at least once every five years using the first-past-the-post system of voting. It is currently represented by John Grady of the Labour Party who has been the MP since 2024.
Glasgow North East is a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was first contested at the 2005 general election. The current Member of Parliament (MP) is Maureen Burke of the Labour Party who gained the seat from Scottish National Party's Anne McLaughlin at the 2024 general election.
Mary Helen Creagh is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry East since 2024,having previously served as MP for Wakefield from 2005 to 2019. A member of the Labour Party,she has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Nature since July 2024.
Helen Catherine Goodman is a British former politician who served as Member of Parliament for Bishop Auckland from 2005 to 2019. A member of the Labour Party,she was Deputy Leader of the House of Commons from 2007 to 2008 and a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2009 to 2010. She also served in government as an Assistant Whip from 2008 to 2009.
Patrick Bosco McFadden is a British politician who has served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party,he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Wolverhampton South East since 2005. McFadden has previously held various junior ministerial positions and shadow portfolios in his parliamentary career between 2005 and 2024.
Scottish Labour,officially the Scottish Labour Party,is the part of the UK Labour Party active in Scotland. Ideologically social democratic and unionist,it holds 22 of 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament and 37 of 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons. It is represented by 262 of the 1,227 local councillors across Scotland. The Scottish Labour party has no separate Chief Whip at Westminster.
The 2009 Glasgow North East by-election was a by-election for the Parliament of the United Kingdom's House of Commons constituency of Glasgow North East. The by-election was held on 12 November 2009 following the resignation of Michael Martin as an MP and as Speaker of the House of Commons following the MPs' expenses scandal. Martin was the first Speaker since Sir John Trevor in 1695 to be forced from office. Willie Bain,the Scottish Labour Party candidate,won with 59% of the vote. Just 33% of the electorate voted,which is the lowest ever percentage turnout in a Scottish by-election to the House of Commons.
Alexander Cunningham is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Stockton North from 2010 to 2024. A member of the Labour Party,he was Shadow Minister for Courts and Sentencing from 2020 to 2024.
Jonathan Michael Graham Ashworth is a British former Labour and Co-op politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester South from 2011 to 2024. He had served as Shadow Paymaster General from September 2023. Having lost his seat at the 2024 general election,he was appointed chief executive of the Labour Together thinktank.
The 2011 Scottish Labour Party leadership election was an internal party election to choose a new leader of the Scottish Labour Party. The election followed the announcement by Iain Gray that he would stand down as leader in the autumn of 2011 following the party's heavy defeat to the Scottish National Party in May's Scottish Parliament general election. Gray won the previous contest in September 2008.
Tommy Sheppard is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Edinburgh East from 2015 until the seat's abolition in 2024. He has been SNP Spokesperson for Scotland since 2023. He is a former SNP spokesperson for the Cabinet Office and a former SNP Shadow Leader of the House of Commons. He is also known for founding The Stand Comedy Clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Paul John Sweeney FIES is a Scottish politician. A member of the Scottish Labour and Co-operative Party,he currently serves as Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow region in the 6th Scottish Parliament,elected in May 2021. He previously served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow North East from 2017 to 2019.
