Tricia Marwick
| The Right Honourable Tricia Marwick | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 4th Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament | |
|
Assumed office 11 May 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Alex Fergusson |
| Member of the Scottish Parliament for Mid Fife and Glenrothes | |
|
In office 5 May 2011 – 24 March 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Jenny Gilruth |
| Member of the Scottish Parliament for Central Fife | |
|
In office 3 May 2007 – 23 March 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Christine May |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Member of the Scottish Parliament for Mid Scotland and Fife | |
|
In office 6 May 1999 – March 2007 | |
| Preceded by | List established |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
5 November 1953 Cowdenbeath, Fife, Scotland |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Political party |
None (2011–present, SNP membership suspended while PO) Scottish National Party (1999–2011) |
| Spouse(s) | Frank Marwick |
| Relations | Natalie McGarry MP (niece) |
| Occupation | Charity Public Affairs Officer |
| Religion | Christian |
Tricia Marwick (born 5 November 1953) is the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, the first woman to hold the post. In that capacity, she is the Convener of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. She served as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) in the first four sessions of the Parliament 1999−2016. She was initially elected from the Mid Scotland and Fife regional list 1999−2007, then as the constituency MSP for Central Fife 2007−11, which was renamed Mid Fife and Glenrothes 2011−16. Her election to Parliament was as a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), but she suspended her membership in 2011 upon her election as the 4th Presiding Officer, following the tradition that the Presiding Officer is nonpartisan.
Background
Marwick was born on 5 November 1953 in Cowdenbeath[1][2] and was brought up in Fife. She worked as Public Affairs Officer for Shelter Scotland, a charity for homeless people, from 1992 to 1999. Her niece is Natalie McGarry MP.[3]
Member of the Scottish Parliament
In the 1999 Scottish Parliamentary election, Marwick was elected as a member for the Mid Scotland and Fife region. She served on the SNP opposition frontbench team as Deputy Business Manager 1999–2000, Shadow Minister for Local Government 2004, Business Manager and Chief Whip 2004–2005 and Shadow Minister for Housing 2005–2007. Marwick has also served as a member of the Scottish Parliament’s Standards, Justice and Home Affairs, Equal Opportunities, Local Government and Communities committees and as convenor of the Waverly Railway (Scotland) Bill committee from 2004–2006.
At the 2003 Scottish Parliamentary election she contested the Central Fife seat and, although she narrowly failed to win the seat, she was re-elected to serve as a member for Mid Scotland and Fife. Marwick contested Central Fife again in 2007 and was elected as the constituencies MSP after defeating the Labour incumbent, Christine May, with a majority of 1,166 votes.
Following the 2007 election Marwick was appointed as the SNP's representative on the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, and oversaw parliamentary access and information issues.
Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament
In the 2011 election, Marwick was elected for the Mid Fife and Glenrothes constituency, essentially a redrawing of her old Central Fife seat. On 11 May 2011, when Parliament reconvened, Marwick was elected to serve as the 4th Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, having won support from the majority of members in the second round of voting.[4] She became the first woman and second SNP member to serve in the position. In October 2012, Marwick accepted a nomination to join the Privy Council, meaning that she is titled the Rt Hon. Tricia Marwick MSP.[5] Each of the previous Presiding Officers were also appointed to the Privy Council.
On 29 May 2015, it was announced that Marwick would step down as Presiding Officer after the 2016 election.[6]
References
- ↑ "People of today: Tricia Marwick". Debrett's. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- ↑ "Tricia Marwick: Keeping MSPs in check, living with cancer and being a geek". BBC News. 30 May 2014.
- ↑ "Nat for Europe!". Dunfermline Press. 31 January 2013.
- ↑ Carrell, Severin (11 May 2011). "Alex Salmond faces row as SNP chooses one of its own as presiding officer". The Guardian.
- ↑ "MSP ‘honoured’ by Privy Council role". Fife Today. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
- ↑ "Presiding Officer Tricia Marwick to step down as MSP". BBC News. 29 May 2015.
External links
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