JOHN Swinney has served as the First Minister of Scotland since May 2024 after becoming the seventh person to hold the position.
He took on the position following the resignation of Humza Yousaf, who stepped down after ending the Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Greens.
Prior to this, Swinney had in fact stepped down from his role in the Scottish Government after the resignation of Nicola Sturgeon.
How long has John Swinney been in politics?
Born in 1964, Swinney first joined the SNP in 1979 and graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in politics.
Prior to entering politics, Swinney (below) was employed as a strategic planning principal with Scottish Amicable and was a business and economic development consultant for five years.
He has held positions in both Westminster and Holyrood, first serving as the MP for Tayside North from 1997 until 2001.
Swinney was subsequently elected as the MSP for North Tayside in 1999 but held his position as an MP before stepping down from Westminster at the 2001 General Election, when he was replaced by Pete Wishart.
He has remained an MSP ever since, although due to boundary changes, he is now the MSP for Perthshire North.
When did John Swinney become First Minister?
Following the resignation of Yousaf as first minister, Swinney was elected to the position in May 2024.
Despite speculation following Yousaf’s resignation, Kate Forbes did not run against Swinney and she now serves as the Deputy First Minister.
Yousaf (below) stepping down also meant that Swinney became leader of the SNP, a position he had previously held from 2000 to 2004.
He was legally sworn in on May 8 in what he said was an “overwhelming moment” as he spoke of his pride at taking on the position.
“It’s a really overwhelming moment to take the oath of office in front of the Lord President of the Court of Session and formally assume the role of First Minister,” he said.
“It’s an extraordinary opportunity to change lives for the better and I’ll continue to use every moment that’s available to me to do so.”
John Swinney news
As told by The National, here’s a look at some of the latest news related to Scotland’s First Minster.
Commonwealth Games' history a 'significant issue', says John Swinney
Glasgow Commonwealth Games should be 'Chris Hoy Games', John Swinney says
Scottish Government offered to pay to repatriate Alex Salmond's body
John Swinney's previous roles in government
During his time in politics, Swinney has held a number of senior roles in the Scottish Government, having first been given the finance and sustainable growth brief in 2007.
He was appointed as deputy first minister and as Scotland’s finance, constitution and economy secretary in November 2014.
Swinney was succeeded in the finance role by Derek Mackay (below) although remained as deputy first minister and served as the education secretary from 2016 until 2021.
Following this, he was appointed as Scotland’s secretary for Covid recovery, a position he held from May 2021 until March 2023.
Swinney also served as acting finance secretary when Forbes was on maternity leave.
After Sturgeon’s resignation, Swinney chose to step back from his Scottish Government responsibilities.
However, following a year on the backbenches, he was once again elected as leader of the SNP and First Minister of Scotland.
John Swinney age and family
John Swinney is 60 years old and has three children. He is married to Elizabeth Quigley (pictured above), who has multiple sclerosis.
Speaking at the 2024 SNP conference, Swinney thanked his wife for the “sacrifices” she has made to allow him to serve as First Minister.
