Sam Galbraith
Sam Galbraith | |
---|---|
Cabinet Secretary for Education and Children | |
In office 19 May 1999 – 26 October 2000 | |
First Minister | Donald Dewar |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Jack McConnell |
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Strathkelvin and Bearsden | |
In office 6 May 1999 – 20 March 2001 | |
Preceded by | New Parliament |
Succeeded by | Brian Fitzpatrick |
Member of Parliament for Strathkelvin and Bearsden | |
In office 11 June 1987 – 14 May 2001 | |
Preceded by | Michael Hirst |
Succeeded by | John Lyons |
Personal details | |
Born | 18 October 1945 Clitheroe, England |
Died | 18 August 2014 (aged 68) |
Citizenship | United Kingdom |
Nationality | Scottish |
Political party | Labour |
Samuel Laird Galbraith (18 October 1945 – 18 August 2014) was a Scottish Labour Party politician who served as the first Cabinet Secretary for Education and Children from 1999 to 2000.
Galbraith had previously been a neurosurgeon of international repute. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1987 to 2001 and was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) from 1999 to 2001. He served as Education Minister in the Scottish Executive under First Minister Donald Dewar from 1999 to 2000. The Labour/Liberal Democrat coalition faced demands from Scottish National Party (SNP) politicians, including future First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, for Galbraith to resign after the SQA examinations controversy in 2000.
Early life[]
Galbraith was born in Clitheroe, Lancashire. He was educated at Greenock High School. He studied at Glasgow University, where he received honours in medicine. Galbraith was a respected neurosurgeon, who worked at Glasgow's Southern General Hospital.[1]
Political career[]
At the 1987 general election, he was returned as Member of Parliament for the Strathkelvin and Bearsden constituency,[2] and held the seat until standing down at the 2001 general election. He was a Scottish Office Minister between 1997 and 1999.[3]
Galbraith served as Minister for Children and Education in the Scottish Executive under Donald Dewar from 1999 to 2000 and then as Minister for Environment, Sport and Culture. On 20 March 2001 he announced his resignation from ministerial office and his parliamentary seats for health reasons.[4]
Personal life[]
He was married, the father of three daughters. In prior years he was an avid mountaineer who had climbed all the Munros and also climbed in the Alps and Himalayas.
Galbraith received a lung transplant in 1990, at Freeman's Hospital Newcastle (where he continued to receive treatment), due to fibrosing alveolitis, a condition that his elder sister died from.[5]
From 2006 he was chairman of the Scottish Maritime Museum with facilities at Irvine, North Ayrshire and Dumbarton.[6]
He died on 18 August 2014.[1]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b Black, Andrew (18 August 2014). "Tributes paid to former Scottish minister Sam Galbraith who has died". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 August 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
- ^ "Resignation calls fall on deaf ears". BBC News. 14 August 2000. Archived from the original on 10 October 2003. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
- ^ "Sam Galbraith: Electoral history and profile". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
- ^ MacLeod, Catherine (20 March 2001). "Galbraith resigns today". The Herald (Glasgow). Retrieved 18 August 2014.
- ^ Martin, Lorna (17 March 2007). "I was meant to die. I didn't". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
- ^ North Ayrshire Council Committee reports and agenda retrieved 22 July 2013.
External links[]
- Scottish Parliament profiles of MSPs: Sam Galbraith
- 1945 births
- 2014 deaths
- Scottish Labour Party MPs
- Labour MSPs
- Ministers of the Scottish Government
- UK MPs 1987–1992
- UK MPs 1992–1997
- UK MPs 1997–2001
- Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003
- Scottish surgeons
- Scottish neurosurgeons
- 20th-century Scottish medical doctors
- Lung transplant recipients
- People from Greenock
- Alumni of the University of Glasgow
- 20th-century surgeons