Cathy Jamieson
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| Cathy Jamieson MSP | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 17 May 2007 |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 6 May 1999 |
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| Preceded by | new constituency |
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| Majority | 3,986 (11.8%) |
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| Born | 11 March 1956 Kilmarnock, Scotland |
| Political party | Scottish Labour Co-operative |
Cathy Jamieson, (b. 3 November 1956, Kilmarnock) is the Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party, former Minister for Justice in the Scottish Executive, and Labour Co-operative Member of the Scottish Parliament for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley.
She became an MSP in the first elections to the Scottish Parliament in 1999, later holding the positions of Minister for Education and Young People in 2001 and then Minister for Justice after the 2003 election until 2007. She is also Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party.
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[edit] Background
Jamieson was educated at James Hamilton Academy in Kilmarnock, before obtaining a BA (Hons) in Fine Art at the Glasgow School of Art and a Higher National Diploma in Art at Goldsmiths College in London.
After training as an art therapist, Jamieson turned to social work, becoming principal officer of an advocacy organisation for young people in care. She was also a member of the Edinburgh inquiry into abuse in residential care and served on the management and advisory committees of several childcare agencies.
She is married and has one son, and has also stated that she is vegan[1].
[edit] Member of the Scottish Parliament
Jamieson was elected an MSP in the first Scottish Parliament elections in 1999. She was elected Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party in 2000 in leadership elections following the death of First Minister Donald Dewar. The position of Deputy Leader was a first for the Scottish party, and Jamieson was elected unopposed.[2]
[edit] Minister for Education and Children
In 2001, Jack McConnell became First Minister and Jamieson was appointed Minister for Education and Young People in the subsequent cabinet shake-up.[3]
During the UK wide fire strike in 2002, Jamieson was criticised for refusing to publicly endorse the Executive's collectively-agreed description of the fire strike as "unacceptable", and opposition MSPs called for her to be sacked. However, the First Minister issued a statement of public support for Jamieson and did not take any action. [4]
[edit] Minister for Justice
Jamieson was appointed Minister for Justice following the 2003 elections.[5]
In February 2005, it was revealed that Jamieson's nephew, Derek Hyslop, tried to blackmail her in 2001 while she was Education Minister. Hyslop was serving a jail sentence for manslaughter, and sent her a Christmas card demanding money, threatening to reveal his criminal convictions if she did not pay him.[6] Jamieson had paid £100 into his bank account in 1999, following the birth of his son, and Hyslop tried to claim that she made the payment to help him evade the police while he was on the run.[7]
One of the major crises to face Jamieson during her time as Minister for Justice, was the scandals occurring after the transfer of prisoner escort duties from the police to a private company, Reliance. Four days following the transfer, Reliance accidentally released a convicted killer at Hamilton Sheriff Court[8]. Jamieson later criticised Reliance and their security methods, but defended the principle of using a private company to transfer prisoners.[9]. Opposition parties later called for her to resign, calls that Jamieson rejected, stating "I think the responsibility on a minister is to ensure that problems are solved... Some people in the face of problems might turn away, might walk away from them. I have no intention of doing that and I never did"[10]
One of the more high profile campaigns launched by Jamieson was a campaign to ban Buckfast, a tonic wine popular with underage drinkers in many parts of Scotland. She campaigned against shops in her Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituency to limit sales of the drink, claiming it was "linked to anti-social behaviour among young people". The distributors of Buckfast later threatened legal action against the Minister, stating it was harming sales.[11] Although the reported effect was that Buckfast sales had actually increased substantially in the months following her comments.[12] On a subsequent visit to Auchinleck, a town within her constituency, she faced an impromptu demonstration by teenagers chanting "Don't ban Buckie".[13]
[edit] Opposition
Following the Scottish National Party's victory at the 2007 Scottish Parliament election, Jamieson was appointed Shadow Minister for Parliamentary Business[14] and was selected as Labour's appointment to the Parliamentary Bureau.
After Jack McConnell's resignation as Labour Leader on August 15, Jamieson was acting leader until September 14, 2007, when Wendy Alexander took over the leadership who appointed Jamieson as her deputy but without a portfolio spokesperson's role[15].
[edit] References
- ^ Will Cathy Jamieson resign as justice minister? 'As long as I've got | Sunday Herald, The | Find Articles at BNET.com
- ^ Birrell, Steven (2002-04-05). 28 Days to select your leader: leadership selection in the Scottish Labour Party (PDF). Political Studies Association.
- ^ "McConnell in radical cabinet shake-up", BBC News, 2001-11-27.
- ^ "McConnell angry at fire row", BBC News, 2002-11-29.
- ^ "McConnell's cabinet: At-a-glance", BBC News, 2003-05-20.
- ^ Gray, Louise. "Justice Minister: my nephew is a jailed killer", The Scotsman, 2005-02-23.
- ^ "McConnell backs justice minister", BBC News, 2005-02-23.
- ^ "Probe into murderer release error", BBC News, 2004-04-08.
- ^ "Escort firm 'underestimated' task", BBC News, 2004-04-21.
- ^ "Jamieson faces resignation calls", BBC News, 2004-04-21.
- ^ Macmahon, Peter. "Legal threat won't deter Jamieson in her bid to ban Buckfast", The Scotsman, 2005-02-14.
- ^ Macmillan, Arthur. "Buckfast sales surge after Jamieson appeal for ban", The Scotsman, 2005-05-08.
- ^ Cowing, Emma. "The monks' tonic that threatens to seduce a generation of Scots", The Scotsman, 2006-10-31.
- ^ "Front bench return for Alexander", BBC News, 2007-05-18.
- ^ "Ex-ministers out of Labour team", BBC News, 2007-09-17.
[edit] External links
- Her personal website
- Cathy Jamieson MSP Scottish Parliament webpage
| Scottish Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Constituency Created |
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley 1999 – present |
Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Jim Wallace |
Minister for Justice 2003–2007 |
Succeeded by Kenny MacAskill (as Cabinet Secretary for Justice) |
| Preceded by Jack McConnell |
Minister for Education and Young People 2002–2003 |
Succeeded by Peter Peacock |
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