John Swinney facts for kids

Quick facts for kids John Swinney MSP
Official portrait, 2016
Leader of the Scottish National Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 May 2024
Depute	Keith Brown
Preceded by	Humza Yousaf
In office 26 September 2000 – 3 September 2004
Depute	Roseanna Cunningham
Preceded by	Alex Salmond
Succeeded by	Alex Salmond
Cabinet offices 2007–2023 Deputy First Minister of Scotland In office 21 November 2014 – 28 March 2023 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Nicola Sturgeon Succeeded by Shona Robison Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy Acting 16 July 2022 – 28 March 2023 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Kate Forbes Succeeded by Shona Robison (Finance) Neil Gray (Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy) In office 17 May 2007 – 18 May 2016 First Minister Alex Salmond Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Tom McCabe Succeeded by Derek Mackay Keith Brown Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery In office 20 May 2021 – 28 March 2023 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Office established Succeeded by Office abolished Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills In office 18 May 2016 – 20 May 2021 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Angela Constance Roseanna Cunningham Succeeded by Shirley-Anne Somerville
Party political offices Deputy Leader of the Scottish National Party In office 25 August 1998 – 26 September 2000 Leader Alex Salmond Preceded by Allan Macartney Succeeded by Roseanna Cunningham
Parliamentary offices Member of the Scottish Parliament for Perthshire North North Tayside (1999–2011) Incumbent Assumed office 6 May 1999 Preceded by Constituency established Majority 3,336 (9.8%) Member of Parliament for Tayside North In office 1 May 1997 – 14 May 2001 Preceded by Bill Walker Succeeded by Pete Wishart
Personal details
Born	John Ramsay Swinney (1964-04-13) 13 April 1964 (age 60) Edinburgh, Scotland
Political party	Scottish National Party
Spouses	Lorna King ​ ​ (m. 1991; div. 1998)​ Elizabeth Quigley ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	3
Relatives	Tom Hunter (uncle)
Alma mater	University of Edinburgh

John Ramsay Swinney (born 13 April 1964) is a Scottish politician who has served as Leader of the Scottish National Party since 2024 and previously from 2000 to 2004. He held various Scottish Cabinet roles under First Ministers Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon from 2007 to 2023. Swinney has served as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999, first representing North Tayside, and then, Perthshire North since 2011.

Early life

John Ramsay Swinney was born on 13 April 1964 in the Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, the son of Kenneth Swinney, a garage manager, and Agnes Weir Swinney (née Hunter). His uncle Tom Hunter was awarded the Victoria Cross whilst serving with the Royal Marines during the Second World War. His maternal grandparents, Ramsey and Mary Hunter, were from England, having moved to Edinburgh in the 1920s.

He was educated at Forrester High School, before attending the University of Edinburgh, where he graduated with an Master of Arts Honours degree in politics in 1986.

Political career

Swinney joined the SNP at a young age and quickly rose to prominence serving as the National Secretary from 1986 to 1992 and Deputy Leader of the SNP from 1998 to 2000. He served in the British House of Commons as Member of Parliament for Tayside North from 1997 to 2001.

Swinney was elected to the inaugural Scottish Parliament in 1999. In 2002, he became Leader of the Opposition in the Scottish Parliament. After an unsuccessful leadership challenge in 2003, Swinney stepped down.

From 2004 to 2007, Swinney sat in the SNP's opposition backbench. In the 2007 Scottish election, the SNP won the highest number of seats in the Scottish Parliament and Salmond was subsequently appointed First Minister of Scotland. Swinney served under Salmond as Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth from 2007 to 2014. After Nicola Sturgeon succeeded Salmond, she appointed Swinney as Deputy First Minister of Scotland in 2014. He also served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution and Economy, until that role was divided into two posts in the second Sturgeon government as a result of the expansion of the Scottish Parliament's financial powers; he was then appointed Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills in 2016, and then as Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery in 2021. On 25 May 2022, Swinney became the longest serving Deputy First Minister, surpassing the previous record which was held by Sturgeon. Swinney served as Acting Finance and Economy Secretary in addition to his position of Covid Recovery Secretary from July 2022 to March 2023, covering the duties of Kate Forbes during her period of maternity leave. In March 2023, Swinney announced his resignation as Deputy First Minister in response to Sturgeon's resignation as First Minister.

Swinney spent the duration of Humza Yousaf's premiership on the backbenches and served as a member of the Scottish Parliament's Justice Committee. Following Yousaf's resignation in April 2024, Swinney ran to succeed him in the 2024 SNP leadership election and was elected unopposed.

Swinney's term as First Minister of Scotland is expected to begin on 8 May 2024, when he is formally sworn into office at the Court of Session, upon Yousaf's resignation.

Personal life

Swinney in 2016

Swinney was married to Lorna King from 1991 to 1998. They had two children: Judith and Stuart. The couple divorced in 1998 after the Daily Record revealed King had an affair with a married nursery teacher. The marriage was subsequently annulled by the Scottish Catholic Tribunal in order that he be allowed to marry in the Catholic Church in Scotland. In 2003, Swinney married Elizabeth Quigley, a BBC Scotland News reporter. Quigley was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2000. In 2010, she gave birth to Swinney's third child, Matthew. They live near Blairgowrie in Perth and Kinross.

Swinney has described himself as "a man of deep Christian faith".

Parliamentary electoral history

2020s

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Perthshire North

Party		Candidate	Constituency			Regional
			Votes	%	±%	Votes	%	±%
	SNP	John Swinney	19,860	49.5	0.9	16,090	40.1	1.6
	Scottish Conservatives	Murdo Fraser	15,807	39.4	0.6	14,670	36.5	1.7
	Green					3,241	8.1	2.1
	Scottish Labour	Ryan Smart	2,324	5.8	1.9	2,838	7.1	0.5
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Barrett	1,802	4.5	0.5	1,728	4.3	0.4
	Alba Party					658	1.6	New
	All for Unity					270	0.7	New
	Scottish Family Party	Donald Marshall	334	0.8	New	230	0.6	New
	Reform UK					111	0.3	New
	Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party					105	0.3	New
	Freedom Alliance (UK)					96	0.2	New
	Scottish Libertarian Party					51	0.1	0.1
	UKIP					34	0.1	1.8
	Independent	Martin Keatings				25	0.1	New
	Renew Party					8	0.0	New
	Independent	Mercy Kamanja				4	0.0	New
Majority			4,053	10.1	0.3
Valid Votes			40,127			40,159
Invalid Votes			141			73
Turnout			40,268	69.9	6.9	40,232	69.9	6.9
	SNP hold		Swing
Notes

2010s

2016 Scottish Parliament election: Perthshire North

Party		Candidate	Constituency			Regional
			Votes	%	±%	Votes	%	±%
	SNP	John Swinney	16,526	48.6	12.2	14,218	41.7	11.4
	Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party	Murdo Fraser	13,190	38.8	12.5	13,038	38.2	13.2
	Labour	Anna McEwan	2,604	7.7	1.2	2,599	7.6	1.4
	Green					2,045	6.0	1.5
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Barrett	1,705	5.0	1.0	1,336	3.9	0.2
	UKIP					634	1.9	0.8
	RISE - Scotland's Left Alliance					104	0.3	New
	Solidarity (Scotland)					78	0.2	0.1
	Scottish Libertarian Party					60	0.2	New
Majority			3,336	9.8	24.7
Valid Votes			34,025			34,112
Invalid Votes			112			59
Turnout			34,137	63.0	6.7	34,171	63.0	6.7
	SNP hold		Swing
Notes

2000s

1990s

Images for kids

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  Swinney speaking in a Scottish Parliament debate, June 2000

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  Swinney's official portrait as Cabinet Secretary for Sustainable Growth

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  Swinney with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon after his appointment as Deputy First Minister, November 2014

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  Sturgeon and Swinney head the first meeting of the Scottish Cabinet, May 2016

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  Swinney at a COVID-19 press conference in 2021

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  Swinney's leadership campaign logo.