Alex Fergusson (Scottish politician).html

3rd Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament
Alex Fergusson MSP

Incumbent
Assumed office 14 May 2007
Preceded by	George Reid
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale
Incumbent
Assumed office 1 May 2003
Preceded by	Alasdair Morgan
Majority	3,333 (11.0%)

Born	8 April 1949 (1949-04-08) (age 59) Wigtownshire
Political party	Scottish Conservative Party

Alex Fergusson (born 8 April 1949, Leswalt, Wigtownshire) is a Conservative politician and Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament. He has been Member of the Scottish Parliament for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale since 2003. He was previously a member for the South of Scotland region from 1999.

Born in rural Wigtownshire in the conservative South of Scotland, he was educated at Britain's most famous school, Eton. From 1971 until 1999 he ran a farm, and as a farmer before his election, he was Conservative spokesman for Agriculture and Forestry in the Scottish Parliament. After holding his seat at the 2007 election, on the 14 May he was elected by his fellow MSPs to succeed George Reid as Presiding Officer.¹ As the office is non-partisan, he had to take voluntary suspension from his political party the Conservatives.

During the draw for the 2007-08 CIS Cup semi-finals, he mixed up the numbers and miscalled the teams, a mistake that was rectified later that day.

He is the Honorary President of English-Speaking Union Scotland

References

^ MSPs elect new presiding officer, BBC News, May 14 2007

External links

Alex Fergusson MSP profile at Scottish Parliament site
Alex Fergusson MSP profile at the site of the Conservative Party
Alex Fergusson MSP profile at personal website
Alex Fergusson, countryside man, BBC profile

Scottish Parliament
Preceded by Alasdair Morgan	Member of the Scottish Parliament for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale 2003 – present	Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by George Reid	Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament 2007 – present	Incumbent
Order of precedence in Scotland
Preceded by The Rt. Hon Alex Salmond MP MSP	Order of Precedence (gentlemen) (Scotland)	Succeeded by Jim Murphy MP

v • d • e Scottish Conservative Party MSPs

Elected in the 2007 election Bill Aitken · Ted Brocklebank · Gavin Brown · Derek Brownlee · Jackson Carlaw · Alex Fergusson (Presiding Officer) · Annabel Goldie · John Lamont · Murdo Fraser · Alex Johnstone · Nanette Milne · Margaret Mitchell · Jamie McGrigor · David McLetchie · Mary Scanlon · John Scott · Elizabeth Smith

v • d • e

Members of the Scottish Parliament in the South of Scotland region

Elected in the 2007 election

Labour (5 seats), SNP (5 seats), Conservative (4 seats), Lib Dems (2 seats)

Constituency MSPs
John Scott (Con, Ayr) • Cathy Jamieson (Lab, Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) • Karen Gillon (Lab, Clydesdale) • Irene Oldfather (Lab, Cunninghame South) • Elaine Murray (Lab, Dumfries) • Iain Gray (Lab, East Lothian) • Alex Fergusson (Presiding Officer, Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) • John Lamont (Con, Roxburgh and Berwickshire) • Jeremy Purvis (Lib Dem, Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale)

Additional Members
Derek Brownlee (Con) • Aileen Campbell (SNP) • Christine Grahame (SNP) • Jim Hume (Lib Dem) • Adam Ingram (SNP) • Alasdair Morgan (SNP) • Mike Russell (SNP)

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