Duncan Hamilton (politician)
Encyclopedia
Duncan Hamilton is a Scottish
lawyer and politician. He was a Scottish National Party
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Highlands and Islands
region
from 1999 to 2003.
He writes a column for The Scotsman
newspaper.
MA
in Modern History
before attaining a LL.B at Edinburgh University. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government
at Harvard University
.
In 1994, he won the World Debating Championship
.
before becoming Assistant to SNP Leader, Alex Salmond
and then to the SNP Chief Executive, Michael Russell.
In the 1999 election he stood as a constituency candidate in Argyll and Bute
, where he finished second behind Liberal Democrat George Lyon achieving the largest swing from the Liberal Democrats to the SNP.
Upon his election in 1999 he was the youngest Member of the Scottish Parliament
. In Holyrood he was a shadow deputy spokesman for the SNP. He is also served as the SNP Deputy Health and Community Care spokesperson, and was a member of the Health and Community Care Committee.
In February 2002, he wrote an open letter to his Argyll and Bute constituency party in which he said he believed it was best for elected representatives to have "real life experience" outside politics.
Along with fellow SNP MSPs Winnie Ewing
, Kay Ullrich
, Colin Campbell
he decided not to stand for election in 2003.
He had been tipped to be one of the rising stars of the Scottish Parliament and was regarded as one of the SNP's most able politicians.
He has since pursued a career in law
and has criticised the quality of the legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament.
In 2007 Hamilton was appointed as a political advisor to First Minister
Alex Salmond
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
lawyer and politician. He was a Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Member of the Scottish Parliament is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.-Methods of Election:MSPs are elected in one of two ways:...
for Highlands and Islands
Highlands and Islands
The Highlands and Islands of Scotland are broadly the Scottish Highlands plus Orkney, Shetland and the Hebrides.The Highlands and Islands are sometimes defined as the area to which the Crofters' Act of 1886 applied...
region
Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region)
The Highlands and Islands is one of the eight electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament which were created in 1999. Eight of the parliament's first past the post constituencies are sub-divisions of the region and it elects seven of the 56 additional-member Members of the Scottish Parliament .The...
from 1999 to 2003.
He writes a column for The Scotsman
The Scotsman
The Scotsman is a British newspaper, published in Edinburgh.As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 38,423, down from about 100,000 in the 1980s....
newspaper.
Education
Hamilton attended Glasgow University, obtaining a first classBritish undergraduate degree classification
The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for undergraduate degrees in the United Kingdom...
MA
Master of Arts (Scotland)
A Master of Arts in Scotland can refer to an undergraduate academic degree in humanities and social sciences awarded by the ancient universities of Scotland – the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh, while the University of...
in Modern History
Modern history
Modern history, or the modern era, describes the historical timeline after the Middle Ages. Modern history can be further broken down into the early modern period and the late modern period after the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution...
before attaining a LL.B at Edinburgh University. He also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government
John F. Kennedy School of Government
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
In 1994, he won the World Debating Championship
World Universities Debating Championship
The World Universities Debating Championship is the world's largest debating tournament, and one of the largest annual international student events in the world. It is a parliamentary debating event, held using the British Parliamentary Debate format. Each year, the event is hosted by a university...
.
Career
He worked briefly for Procter & GambleProcter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
before becoming Assistant to SNP Leader, Alex Salmond
Alex Salmond
Alexander Elliot Anderson "Alex" Salmond MSP is a Scottish politician and current First Minister of Scotland. He became Scotland's fourth First Minister in May 2007. He is the Leader of the Scottish National Party , having served as Member of the Scottish Parliament for Gordon...
and then to the SNP Chief Executive, Michael Russell.
In the 1999 election he stood as a constituency candidate in Argyll and Bute
Argyll and Bute (Scottish Parliament constituency)
Argyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
, where he finished second behind Liberal Democrat George Lyon achieving the largest swing from the Liberal Democrats to the SNP.
Upon his election in 1999 he was the youngest Member of the Scottish Parliament
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Member of the Scottish Parliament is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.-Methods of Election:MSPs are elected in one of two ways:...
. In Holyrood he was a shadow deputy spokesman for the SNP. He is also served as the SNP Deputy Health and Community Care spokesperson, and was a member of the Health and Community Care Committee.
- Shadow Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care, May 1999 - September 2000
- Shadow Deputy Minister for Enterprise & Lifelong Learning, September 2000 - April 2003
In February 2002, he wrote an open letter to his Argyll and Bute constituency party in which he said he believed it was best for elected representatives to have "real life experience" outside politics.
Along with fellow SNP MSPs Winnie Ewing
Winnie Ewing
Winifred Margaret 'Winnie' Ewing is a Scottish nationalist, lawyer and prominent SNP politician who was formerly a Member of Parliament , Member of the European Parliament and Member of the Scottish Parliament...
, Kay Ullrich
Kay Ullrich
Kay Ullrich is a Scottish politician. She was a Scottish National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament for the West of Scotland region from 1999 to 2003....
, Colin Campbell
Colin Campbell (Scottish politician)
Colin Campbell is a Scottish politician. He was a Scottish National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament for West of Scotland region from 1999 to 2003.-Biography:...
he decided not to stand for election in 2003.
He had been tipped to be one of the rising stars of the Scottish Parliament and was regarded as one of the SNP's most able politicians.
He has since pursued a career in law
Scots law
Scots law is the legal system of Scotland. It is considered a hybrid or mixed legal system as it traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. With English law and Northern Irish law it forms the legal system of the United Kingdom; it shares with the two other systems some...
and has criticised the quality of the legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament.
In 2007 Hamilton was appointed as a political advisor to First Minister
First Minister of Scotland
The First Minister of Scotland is the political leader of Scotland and head of the Scottish Government. The First Minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Scottish Government policy...
Alex Salmond
Alex Salmond
Alexander Elliot Anderson "Alex" Salmond MSP is a Scottish politician and current First Minister of Scotland. He became Scotland's fourth First Minister in May 2007. He is the Leader of the Scottish National Party , having served as Member of the Scottish Parliament for Gordon...
.