This is a list of members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) who were returned to the fifth session of the Scottish Parliament. Of the 129 MSPs returned at the 2016 general election, 73 were returned from first past the post constituencies with a further 56 members returned from eight regions, each electing seven MSPs as a form of mixed member proportional representation.
| 5th Scottish Parliament | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
 Members elected to the Scottish Parliament on 5 May 2016 | |||||
| Overview | |||||
| Legislative body | Scottish Parliament | ||||
| Jurisdiction | Scotland | ||||
| Meeting place | Scottish Parliament Building | ||||
| Term | 12 May 2016 – 5 May 2021[1] | ||||
| Election | 2016 | ||||
| Government | Second Sturgeon government | ||||
| Members | 129 | ||||
| Presiding Officer | Rt Hon Ken Macintosh | ||||
| First Minister | Nicola Sturgeon | ||||
| Deputy First Minister | John Swinney | ||||
| Leader of the Opposition | Ruth Davidson (2016–18) Jackson Carlaw (2018–19) Ruth Davidson (2019) Jackson Carlaw (2019–20) Ruth Davidson (2020–21) | ||||
Parliament reconvened on 12 May 2016 with the swearing-in of MSPs and the election of the presiding officer and two deputy presiding officers.[2] Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the fifth session on 2 July 2016.[3]
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Composition
edit| Party | May 2016 election |
May 2021 dissolution | |
|---|---|---|---|
| • | Scottish National Party | 63 | 61 |
| Scottish Conservatives | 31 | 30 | |
| Scottish Labour | 24 | 23 | |
| Scottish Greens | 6 | 5 | |
| Scottish Liberal Democrats | 5 | 5 | |
| Reform UK | 0 | 1 | |
| Independent | 0 | 3 | |
| Presiding Officer | 0 | 1 | |
| Total | 129 | ||
| Government majority | −3 | −6 | |
Government parties denoted with bullets (•)
Graphical representation
editThese are graphical representations of the Scottish Parliament showing a comparison of party strengths as it was directly after the 2016 general election and its composition at dissolution:
- Note this is not the official seating plan of the Scottish Parliament.
List of MSPs
editThis is a list of MSPs. The changes table below records all changes in party affiliation during the session, since the May 2016 election.
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Former MSPs
edit| Name | Image | Member for | Type | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kezia Dugdale | 
|
Lothian | Regional | Scottish Labour Party | Resigned 15 July 2019 | |
| Alex Johnstone | 
|
North East Scotland | Regional | Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party | Died 7 December 2016 | |
| John Lamont | 
|
Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire | Constituency | Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party | Resigned 27 April 2017 | |
| Douglas Ross | 
|
Highlands and Islands | Regional | Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party | Resigned 11 June 2017 | |
| Tavish Scott | 
|
Shetland | Constituency | Scottish Liberal Democrats | Resigned 15 July 2019 | |
| Ross Thomson | 
|
North East Scotland | Regional | Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party | Resigned 12 June 2017 | |
Changes
edit| Date | Constituency/region | Gain | Loss | Note | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 May 2016 | West Scotland | Presiding Officer | Labour | Ken Macintosh was elected Presiding Officer and consequently had to renounce his party affiliation.[4][5] | ||
| 7 December 2016 | North East Scotland | Conservative | Conservative | Alex Johnstone died on 7 December 2016, aged 55.[6] It was announced on 13 December that the Conservatives had nominated Bill Bowman to replace Johnstone.[7] Bowman was sworn in on 21 December.[8] | ||
| 27 April 2017 | Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire | Conservative | Conservative | John Lamont resigned his seat, effective 4 May 2017, in order to contest the 2017 UK general election.[9] This triggered a by-election in his Scottish Parliament seat, which was held on the same day as the UK general election (8 June 2017).[9] Rachael Hamilton won the seat. | ||
| 2 May 2017 | South Scotland | Conservative | Conservative | Rachael Hamilton resigned her list seat in order to contest the 2017 Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire by-election on 8 June.[10] She was replaced by Michelle Ballantyne,[11] who was sworn in on 23 May.[12] | ||
| 11 June 2017 | Highlands and Islands | Conservative | Conservative | Douglas Ross resigned his seat in the Scottish Parliament, having won election to the UK Parliament in the 2017 general election.[13] Ross was succeeded by Jamie Halcro Johnston, who was sworn in on 20 June.[14] | ||
| 12 June 2017 | North East Scotland | Conservative | Conservative | Ross Thomson resigned his seat in the Scottish Parliament, having won election to the UK Parliament in the 2017 general election.[13] Thomson was succeeded by Tom Mason, who was sworn in on 20 June.[14] | ||
| 15 November 2017 | Mid Scotland and Fife | Independent | Labour | Alex Rowley was suspended by Labour due to allegations about his conduct.[15] | ||
| 16 November 2017 | Aberdeen Donside | Independent | SNP | Mark McDonald was suspended by the SNP due to allegations about his conduct,[16] and he subsequently resigned his membership of the SNP.[17] | ||
| 19 December 2017 | Mid Scotland and Fife | Labour | Independent | Alex Rowley was reinstated by Labour.[18] | ||
| 15 July 2019 | Lothian | Labour | Labour | Kezia Dugdale resigned her seat in the Scottish Parliament, taking a job with a think-tank.[19] Dugale was succeeded by Sarah Boyack.[19] | ||
| 15 July 2019 | Shetland | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats | Tavish Scott resigned his seat in the Scottish Parliament, taking a job with Scottish Rugby.[20] This triggered a by-election, which was won Beatrice Wishart. | ||
| 6 February 2020 | Renfrewshire North and West | Independent | SNP | Derek Mackay was suspended by the SNP due to allegations about his conduct.[21] | ||
| 24 November 2020 | South Scotland | Independent | Conservative | Michelle Ballantyne left the Conservative Party due to disagreements over policy relating to the Covid-19 pandemic.[22] | ||
| 18 December 2020 | Lothian | Independent | Scottish Green | Andy Wightman resigned from the Scottish Green Party due to disagreements over policy relating to transgender rights.[23] | ||
| 11 January 2021 | South Scotland | Reform UK | Independent | Michelle Ballantyne joined Reform UK (formerly known as the Brexit Party) and was appointed leader of Reform UK Scotland.[24] | ||
References
edit- ^ "Scottish General Election (Coronavirus) Act 2021". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
- ^ Vevers, Den (12 May 2016). "MSPs sworn in as Scottish Parliament resumes business". STV News. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
- ^ "Queen urges calm in 'challenging world'". BBC News. 2 July 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
- ^ "Ken Macintosh chosen as Holyrood presiding officer". BBC News. BBC. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ Brooks, Libby (12 May 2016). "Ken Macintosh elected as presiding officer of Scottish parliament". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
- ^ "Scottish Conservative MSP Alex Johnstone dies aged 55". BBC News. BBC. 7 December 2016. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- ^ "Replacement for late MSP Alex Johnstone announced as Bill Bowman". BBC News. BBC. 13 December 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
- ^ "New Conservative MSP Bill Bowman takes his oath of allegiance". BBC News. BBC. 21 December 2016. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
- ^ a b "Tory MSP to quit Holyrood to stand for Westminster". BBC News. 25 April 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
- ^ "MSP Rachael Hamilton quits to fight Holyrood by-election". BBC News. BBC. 3 May 2017. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
- ^ Freeman, Tom (18 May 2017). "Selkirkshire councillor Michelle Ballantyne is new Tory MSP". Holyrood Magazine. Archived from the original on 22 May 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
- ^ "New Conservative MSP sworn in at Holyrood". BBC News. BBC. 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
- ^ a b "Newly-elected Tory MPs quit Holyrood for Westminster". BBC News. BBC. 13 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- ^ a b "Two new Conservative MSPs sworn in at Holyrood". BBC News. BBC. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
- ^ "Labour suspends deputy leader Alex Rowley during conduct probe". BBC News. BBC. 15 November 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
- ^ "SNP suspends former government minister". BBC News. BBC. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
- ^ "Mark McDonald quits SNP but continues as MSP". BBC News. BBC. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
- ^ "Leonard unveils new Scottish Labour front bench team". BBC News. BBC. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
- ^ a b "Sarah Boyack to return to Holyrood as Labour MSP". BBC News. BBC. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
- ^ "Former Lib Dem leader Tavish Scott to quit Holyrood". BBC News. BBC. 26 June 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
- ^ "Derek Mackay: Scottish finance secretary quits over messages to boy". BBC News. BBC. 2 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
- ^ "MSP Michelle Ballantyne quits Scottish Tories". BBC News. BBC. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
- ^ "Andy Wightman quits Scottish Greens over trans rights stance". BBC News. BBC. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
- ^ "Former Tory MSP to lead Scots wing of rebranded Brexit Party". BBC News. BBC. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
External links
edit- Scottish Parliament website
- Current and previous Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), on the Scottish Parliament website