Iain Gray
{{short description|Scottish Labour politician}}
{{For|other people with similar names|Ian Gray (disambiguation){{!}}Ian Gray}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Iain Gray
| honorific-suffix =
| image = Iain Gray in 2008 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Gray in 2008
| office2 = Leader of the Scottish Labour Party
| termlabel2 = Acting
| 1blankname2 = UK party leader
| 1namedata2 = Harriet Harman (acting)
| predecessor2 = Jim Murphy
| successor2 = Kezia Dugdale
| term_start2 = 13 June 2015
| term_end2 = 15 August 2015
| 1blankname3 = UK party leader
| 1namedata3 = {{ubl|Gordon Brown|Harriet Harman (acting)|Ed Miliband}}
| term_start3 = 13 September 2008
| term_end3 = 17 December 2011
| deputy3 = Johann Lamont
| predecessor3 = Wendy Alexander
| successor3 = Johann Lamont
{{collapsed infobox section begin|last=yes|Ministerial offices
|titlestyle=border:1px dashed lightgrey;}}{{Infobox officeholder |embed=yes
| office = Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning
| firstminister = Jack McConnell
| term_start = 3 May 2002
| term_end = 21 May 2003
| predecessor = Wendy Alexander
| successor = Jim Wallace
| office1 = Minister for Social Justice
| firstminister1 = Jack McConnell
| term_start1 = 22 November 2001
| term_end1 = 3 May 2002
| predecessor1 = Jackie Baillie
| successor1 = Margaret Curran
{{Collapsed infobox section end}}
}}
{{collapsed infobox section begin|last=yes|Parliamentary offices
|titlestyle=border:1px dashed lightgrey;}}{{Infobox officeholder |embed=yes
| office = Leader of the Opposition in Scotland
| monarch = Elizabeth II
| firstminister = Nicola Sturgeon
| term_start = 13 June 2015
| term_end = 15 August 2015
| predecessor = Kezia Dugdale
| successor = Kezia Dugdale
| monarch1 = Elizabeth II
| firstminister1 = Alex Salmond
| term_start1 = 13 September 2008
| term_end1 = 17 December 2011
| predecessor1 = Cathy Jamieson
| successor1 = Johann Lamont
| office2 = Member of the Scottish Parliament
for East Lothian
| term_start2 = 3 May 2007
| term_end2 = 6 May 2021
| predecessor2 = John Home Robertson
| successor2 = Paul McLennan
| office3 = Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Edinburgh Pentlands
| term_start3 = 6 May 1999
| term_end3 = 1 May 2003
| predecessor3 = Constituency established
| successor3 = David McLetchie
| office4 = Scottish Labour portfolios
| subterm4 = 2014–2021
| suboffice4 = Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills{{efn|Education and Lifelong Learning (2014–15); Opportunity (2015–16)}}
| subterm5 = 2007-2008
| suboffice5 = Shadow Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism
{{Collapsed infobox section end}}
}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1957|06|7}}
| birth_place = Edinburgh, Scotland
| death_date =
| death_place =
| birthname =
| party = Scottish Labour
| spouse = Gillianne McCormack{{Who's Who | title=GRAY, Iain Cumming | id = U17921 | volume = 2021 | edition = online}}
| relations =
| children =
| residence =
| alma_mater = University of Edinburgh
| occupation =
| profession =
| signature =
| footnotes =
}}
Iain Cumming Gray (born 7 June 1957) is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2008 to 2011. He was the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the East Lothian constituency from 2007 to 2021, having previously represented Edinburgh Pentlands from 1999 to 2003.
A former aid worker and teacher of mathematics and physics, Gray was first elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 as MSP for the Edinburgh Pentlands constituency, which he lost to Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party David McLetchie in 2003. Gray was returned to Holyrood in 2007 as MSP for East Lothian. Following Wendy Alexander's resignation as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party in 2008, Gray stood at the subsequent leadership election, and was elected with a 57.8% share of the vote in the second round.
Initially, Gray oversaw some electoral successes for Scottish Labour, such as repelling SNP challenges at the Glenrothes (2008) and Glasgow North East (2009) by-elections, as well as seeing Scottish Labour retain all their 41 seats in the House of Commons at the 2010 general election; despite the election overall resulting in the first UK hung parliament in 36 years, and the Labour Party being defeated after thirteen years in government. The 2011 Scottish Parliament election proved disastrous for the party, which lost 20 constituencies (7 seats overall) as the SNP won an outright majority of seats. Gray himself was only re-elected as MSP for East Lothian with a narrow majority of 151 votes. Gray announced his resignation the day after the result, but remained in post as leader until his successor, Johann Lamont, took over on 17 December 2011.
Due to his experience, Gray was appointed as Acting Leader of the Scottish Labour Party while a leadership and a deputy leadership election were being simultaneously held, on account of deputy leader Kezia Dugdale resigning to run for the leadership and the resignation of previous leader Jim Murphy after Scottish Labour's landslide defeat at the 2015 general election.
Early life and career
Gray was educated at the state comprehensive Inverness Royal Academy and briefly privately at George Watson's College, Edinburgh.{{cite web |url=http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=168993§ioncode=26 |title=In the news: Iain Gray |first=Olga |last=Wojtas|date=10 May 2002|work=Times Higher Education|access-date=11 February 2010}} He studied physics at the University of Edinburgh before training as a teacher at Moray House College of Education.{{cite web |url=http://www.iaingray.org.uk/about-iain |title=About Iain | Iain Gray |access-date=2010-09-29 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410230245/http://www.iaingray.org.uk/about-iain |archive-date=10 April 2011 |df=dmy-all }} After graduation, he worked as a mathematics and physics teacher at Gracemount High School in Edinburgh before a teaching stint in Mozambique.{{cite news|last=Mulholland|first=Helene|date=8 August 2008|title=Scottish Labour leadership: who is running?|work=guardian.co.uk|location=London|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2008/aug/08/scotland.labour|access-date=11 February 2010}} He then spent twelve years as the campaigns director for the Scottish arm of the aid charity Oxfam.
Early political career
Having previously stood as a candidate in Lothian Regional Council elections, Gray was first elected to the devolved Scottish Parliament at the 1999 Scottish Parliament election.{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/scotland/2001/mcleish_resignation/1678674.stm | work=BBC News | title=Who's who in the Scottish Cabinet | date=28 November 2001}} Immediately after his election to Holyrood, he was made a deputy minister in the first Scottish Executive under Donald Dewar.
Following Jack McConnell becoming First Minister in 2001, Gray was promoted to Minister for Social Justice. After the sudden resignation of Wendy Alexander (following disagreements with McConnell) in 2002,{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1560458/Profile-Wendy-Alexander.html | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | title=Profile: Wendy Alexander | date=16 August 2007}} Gray took over her role as Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning, where he was responsible for overseeing changes to Scottish higher education.
At the 2003 Scottish Parliament election, Gray was defeated by Scottish Conservative leader David McLetchie, who he had stood against in 1999. Leaving Holyrood, he went to work in London as a special adviser to Alistair Darling, who was Secretary of State for Scotland, and initially announced that he would not be seeking re-election.{{cite web |url=http://www.alba.org.uk/scot07constit/s06.html |title=East Lothian |access-date=2011-04-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101007112053/http://www.alba.org.uk/scot07constit/s06.html |archive-date=7 October 2010 |df=dmy-all }}
Having subsequently a change of mind, he was selected as the official Labour candidate for East Lothian for the 2007 election and subsequently won. Gray was appointed as Scottish Labour's Shadow spokesman for enterprise, energy and tourism upon his return to Holyrood.
Leader of the Scottish Labour Party
Following the resignation of Wendy Alexander over a foreign donation scandal,{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2008/jun/28/labour.scotland1 | location=London | work=The Guardian | title=Wendy Alexander: Labour's short-lived Scottish leader | date=28 June 2008}} Gray announced in July 2008 that he would stand in the contest to find the next Leader of the Labour group in the Scottish Parliament, and was elected to this post in September 2008.{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7614081.stm |title=Gray becomes Scots Labour leader|date=13 September 2008|work=bbc.co.uk|access-date=11 February 2010}}
In December 2010, Iain Gray sparked a diplomatic row when he appeared to claim in parliament that Montenegro had been involved in ethnic cleansing and war crimes during the 1990s Balkans Conflict.{{Cite web |url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/iain_gray_urged_to_say_sorry_after_ethnic_cleansing_gaffe_sparks_diplomatic_row_1_1523919 |title=Iain Gray urged to say sorry after 'ethnic cleansing' gaffe sparks diplomatic row - The Scotsman |date=17 March 2016 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317111723/http://www.scotsman.com/news/iain_gray_urged_to_say_sorry_after_ethnic_cleansing_gaffe_sparks_diplomatic_row_1_1523919 |archive-date=17 March 2016 |url-status=dead}}
On 7 April 2011, whilst campaigning at Glasgow Central station for the Scottish Parliament election, Gray was forced to cancel an event due to disruption by a group protesting against public spending cuts lead by Sean Clerkin. He quickly left the station and ran into a nearby Subway outlet to escape the protesters, who followed him into the shop and continued to heckle him.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12998918|title=Scottish election: Iain Gray targeted by protesters|publisher=BBC News|date=7 April 2011|access-date=22 April 2011}} Gray later stated that he had not been unsettled by the incident as "I spent two years working in the civil war in Mozambique, I've been to Rwanda two months after the genocide, I walked the killing fields in Cambodia and I was in Chile three days after Pinochet was demitted from office".{{cite news|url=http://news.stv.tv/election-2011/242107-iain-gray-cuts-station-visit-short-after-organised-protest/|title=Iain Gray seeks refuge in Subway sandwich shop after being confronted by protesters|publisher=STV News|date=7 April 2011|access-date=25 April 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110412090351/http://news.stv.tv/election-2011/242107-iain-gray-cuts-station-visit-short-after-organised-protest/|archive-date=12 April 2011|df=dmy-all}}
At the 2011 election, Labour suffered a net loss of seven seats, with many of their leading figures being defeated. Labour took a particularly severe beating in its Central Belt heartland, having to rely on regional lists in many cases. It was Labour's worst electoral performance in Scotland in eighty years. Gray himself was re-elected as MSP for East Lothian by the narrowest margin of his political career; with just 151 votes over the SNP candidate, making the Holyrood seat for the first time ever a Labour–SNP marginal. He announced on 6 May that he would stand down as party leader in the autumn.
Later political career
Gray was reappointed to the post of Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Finance in the Scottish Labour Shadow Cabinet on 29 June 2013. After the 2014 leadership election, he was made Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning.
On 13 June 2015, Gray was appointed Acting Leader of the Scottish Labour Party whilst a leadership and a deputy leadership election were simultaneously held, on account of deputy leader Kezia Dugdale resigning to run for the leadership.{{cite web|title=Scottish Labour agree to swathe of party reforms – and new leader will be announced on August 15th|url=http://labourlist.org/2015/06/scottish-labour-agree-to-swathe-of-party-reforms-and-new-leader-will-be-announced-o-august-15th/|date=13 June 2015|publisher=LabourList|access-date=13 June 2015}} At the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, while several Labour MSPs lost their seats, Gray retained his seat with an increased majority compared to 2011.
Gray announced that he would be standing down at the 2021 Scottish Parliament election in June 2020, in order to spend more time with his family.{{Cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/people/east-lothian-msp-iain-gray-stepping-down-to-spend-more-time-with-family-2887221|title=East Lothian MSP Iain Gray stepping down from Scottish Parliament to spend more time with family|website=www.scotsman.com}}
Gray nominated Anas Sarwar in the 2021 Scottish Labour leadership election.{{Cite web|title=Scottish Leadership Election 2021 - Nominations|url=http://scottishlabour.org.uk/people/2021-leadership-election/nominations/|access-date=2021-01-26|website=Scottish Labour|language=en|archive-date=16 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416234857/https://scottishlabour.org.uk/people/2021-leadership-election/nominations/|url-status=dead}}
Personal life
Gray has been married twice.{{cite web|url=http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/vli/history/whisp/whisp-02/wh106-01.htm|title=WHISP|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610024710/http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/vli/history/whisp/whisp-02/wh106-01.htm|archive-date=10 June 2008|access-date=2011-04-24|df=dmy-all}} He is a lifelong fan of Edinburgh football club Hibernian,{{cite web|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/real-life/2011/01/16/scottish-labour-leader-iain-gray-reveals-how-he-fell-for-wife-at-the-football-86908-22853192/|title=Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray reveals how he fell for wife – at the football|last=Aitken|first=Mark|date=16 January 2011|work=Sunday Mail|access-date=26 February 2011}} and enjoys reading, music and hill walking. He is a member of the Church of Scotland.{{cite news|url=http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/politics/Interview-Iain-Gray-Scottish-Labour.6740977.jp?articlepage=2|title=Interview: Iain Gray, Scottish Labour leader|last=Deveney|first=Catherine|date=27 March 2011|work=Scotland on Sunday|access-date=27 March 2011|location=Edinburgh|archive-date=27 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227154211/https://www.scotsman.com/news-2-15012/interview-iain-gray-scottish-labour-leader-1-1544705|url-status=dead}}
Notes
{{notelist}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{SP-MSP}}
- [http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2002/05/1572 Scottish Government biography]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7614081.stm Gray becomes Scots Labour leader] BBC News
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7618474.stm Labour frontline team announced] BBC News
{{s-start}}
{{s-par|sct}}
{{s-new|Parliament|reason=Scotland Act 1998}}
{{s-ttl
| title=Member of the Scottish Parliament for Edinburgh Pentlands
}}
{{s-aft | after=David McLetchie }}
{{s-bef|before=John Home Robertson}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the Scottish Parliament for East Lothian|years=2007–present}}
{{s-inc}}
{{s-off}}
{{succession box | title=Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning | before=Wendy Alexander | after=Jim Wallace | years=2002–2003}}
{{succession box | title=Minister for Social Justice | years=2001–2002 | before=Jackie Baillie| after=Margaret Curran}}
{{succession box | title=Deputy Minister for Justice | before=Angus MacKay | after=Richard Simpson | years=2000–2001}}
{{s-new|office|reason=Scotland Act 1998}}
{{s-ttl
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{{succession box | title=Leader of the Scottish Labour Party | before=Wendy Alexander| after=Johann Lamont | years=2008–2011}}
{{succession box | title=Leader of the Scottish Labour Party
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{{s-end}}
{{Scottish Labour Party leadership election, 2008}}
{{Scottish Labour Party}}
{{Former Labour MSPs|state=collapsed}}
{{2011 Scottish Parliament election|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Iain}}
Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament for Edinburgh constituencies
Category:Ministers of the Scottish Government
Category:People educated at George Watson's College
Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Category:Scottish schoolteachers
Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003
Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 2007–2011
Category:Politics of East Lothian
Category:People educated at Inverness Royal Academy
Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 2011–2016