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Jim Wallace QC, MSP (born August 25, 1954 in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway) is a Scottish politician, first leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, first Deputy First Minister of the Scottish Executive, and Member of the Scottish Parliament for Orkney.
Education
Wallace grew up in Annan, studying there before being accepted to Cambridge University where he obtained a joint degree in Economics and Law. From there he travelled to Edinburgh to read Legal Studies, graduating in 1977.
Political career
Westminster
Wallace stayed based in Edinburgh as he entered politics, joining the then-Liberal Party. He failed to win a constituency at the first time of asking, the seat of Dumfriesshire in 1979. Four years later, he would earn the Liberal nomination for the seat of Orkney and Shetland, a safe seat previously occupied by Jo Grimond, and won election to the UK parliament. He stayed at Westminster for 16 years, until the advent of devolution in 1999. From there on he devoted his time to the Scottish Parlimanent, earning election for the Orkney constituency in the first elections to that parliament.Holyrood
Labour failed to gain an outright majority in the first elections, forcing Donald Dewar to enter a coalition government with Wallace’s Liberal Democrats, and agreement under which Wallace became Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice. He maintained the brief throughout the first term of the Parliament, on two occasions standing in as Acting First Minister, firstly in 2000 due to the death of Dewar and in 2001 after the resignation of Henry McLeish. After the 2003 elections, he also picked up the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning brief in Jack McConnell’s cabinet reshuffle. He was appointed a Privy Counsellor in 2000.Resignation
On May 9, 2005, Wallace announced his intention to stand down as party leader and Deputy First Minister, to serve his time out in the Parliament until the 2007 election as a backbench MSP. He was adamant to retire from frontline politics on a high following the success of the Liberal Democrats in the 2005 UK general election. His resignation took effect on 23 June, and Nicol Stephen was elected to replace him.Affiliation with the Church of Scotland
Wallace is also an elder of the Church of Scotland, attending St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall, Orkney.
See also
External links
- Jim Wallace MSP official site
- Jim Wallace MSP official biography at the Scottish Parliament website
- Jim Wallace MSP profile at the site of Scottish Liberal Democrats
1954 births | Living people | Natives of Dumfries and Galloway | Leaders of political parties in Scotland | Members of the United Kingdom Parliament from Orkney and Shetland | Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom | Deputy First Ministers of Scotland | UK Liberal Party politicians | UK Liberal Democrat politicians
"Jim Wallace"