Andy Wightman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Andy Wightman
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Lothian
In office 5 May 2016 – 4 May 2021
Personal details
Born	Andrew Dearg Wightman 1963 Dundee, Scotland
Political party	Independent (2020–present)
Other political affiliations	Scottish Greens (2009–2020)
Residences	Lochaber, Highlands
Alma mater	University of Aberdeen
Occupation	writer

Andrew Dearg Wightman (born in 1963) is a Scottish politician. He was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Lothian area from 2016 to 2021. He was first elected as a member of the Scottish Greens party. In 2020, he left the party and finished his term as an independent MSP.

Andy Wightman is also a writer and researcher. He is well-known for his work on land ownership in Scotland. He has written books like Who Owns Scotland (1996) and The Poor Had No Lawyers (2015).

About Andy Wightman

Andy Wightman was born in Dundee, Scotland. He studied forestry at the University of Aberdeen. He finished his degree in 1985.

Early Career and Environmental Work

Wightman helped start Reforesting Scotland. This is an environmental charity. It works to plant more trees and create a healthy forest culture in Scotland. He was the first development officer for this group in 1991.

He also worked as a scientist on renewable energy. Later, he became a writer and researcher in 1993. For over 20 years, he wrote about important topics. These included how land is used and owned in Scotland. He also looked at local democracy and tax changes.

Documentary Appearances

Andy Wightman appeared in the film You've Been Trumped (2011). This movie was about Donald Trump's golf course in Balmedie, Aberdeenshire. Wightman gave advice to a local farmer about a land disagreement with Trump. He also appeared in the sequel, You've Been Trumped Too (2016).

He also helped lead a group called Land Action Scotland. This group aims to help local people. They want to make sure companies that own land are run fairly.

Work on Local Taxes

In 2015, Wightman joined the Commission on Local Tax Reform. This group was set up by the Scottish Government. Their job was to find new ways to collect local taxes. They looked for alternatives to the Council Tax. Their final report was published in December 2015.

Political Journey

Andy Wightman joined the Scottish Greens party in 2009. In 2015, he was chosen as a candidate for the 2016 election. He was elected as an MSP on May 5, 2016.

Role as an MSP

As an MSP, he became the Scottish Greens' spokesperson. He focused on housing, land reform, and local government.

He was part of a group of Scottish politicians. They asked the European Court of Justice a question. They wanted to know if the UK could change its mind about leaving the European Union. In 2018, the court decided that the UK could indeed change its mind.

Leaving the Scottish Greens

In 2020, Andy Wightman left the Scottish Greens party. He became an independent MSP. He explained that he wanted a more open and understanding environment. He felt there were differences in opinion within the party.

After leaving the Greens, he ran as an independent candidate. This was for the Highlands and Islands region in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. However, he was not elected.

In 2022, he shared his view on a second Scottish independence referendum. He said he would not support it unless there was strong public support for it.

Books by Andy Wightman

• From Fraser Darling to Terry Wogan: A Perspective on Scotland's Forests, in Mollison, Denis (ed.) (1992), Wilderness with People: The Management of Wild Land, John Muir Trust, pp. 56 – 63
• Scottish Woodlands in a Global Context, in Ashmole, Philip (ed.) (1994), Restoring Borders Woodland, Peeblesshire Environmental Concern, pp. 6 – 10
• Who Owns Scotland (Canongate, 1996)
• Scotland: Land and Power. An Agenda for Land Reform (Luath, 1999)
• The Poor Had No Lawyers (Birlinn Books, Third Edition, 2015)