Fiona McLeod

Education

McLeod studied History at University of Glasgow, before gaining a Postgraduate Diploma in Librarianship at University of Strathclyde.

Career

She is the Scottish National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament for Strathkelvin and Bearsden constituency. She has previously been an Managing Successful Programmes for the West of Scotland region from 1999 to 2003. She worked as a librarian at Glasgow North College of Nursing and the Marie Curie Huntershill Hospice.

McLeod is married with one son.

In the 1999 election she stood as a constituency candidate in Strathkelvin and Bearsden, where she was runner-up to Labour candidate Sam Galbraith. However her number four position on the Scottish National Party West of Scotland list was enough to take her to Holyrood.

She served as Shadow Depute Minister for Education, Children and Sport. Galbraith resigned his seat in 2001 but McLeod did not stand in the subsequent by-election as this would have meant resigning her seat.

She also only placed 7th on the Scottish National Party list for West of Scotland and so also lost her top-up place in parliament.

On 18 December 2014 she was appointed to serve as Minister for Children and Young People during Aileen Campbell Managing Successful Programmes"s maternity leave. The intention to make the appointment had previously been announced on 21 November 2014.

Achievements

• However she did contest the seat in the 2003 election but finished fourth, behind Jean Turner (an independent), Brian Fitzpatrick (who had won the by-election) and Jo Swinson (who would later become Member of Parliament for part of the seat). In the Scottish Parliament general election 2011 she won the constituency of Strathkelvin and Bearsden following the Scottish National Party landslide victory, defeating David Whitton on a swing of 7.7%.

Membership

She was appointed to Ofcom"s Scottish Advisory Committee from 2004 to 2006, and was a founding member of Westerton Junior Youth Club.