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George Foulkes

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Rt Hon George Foulkes MSP

I have been a lifelong advocate of devolution and am consequently proud to be the first Labour member for the Lothians region in the Scottish Parliament.

I first entered elected politics in 1970 as a Councillor for Sighthill here in Edinburgh where I went on to become a Lothian Regional Councillor and chair of Lothian Council and COSLA’s education committees.

In 1979 I was elected to the House of Commons as the MP for South Ayrshire which was a privilege to serve for 26 years. I held a number of shadow ministerial positions during that time. When Labour won the general election in 1997, I took up the post of Under Secretary at the Department of International Development for 4 years before becoming Minister of State for Scotland.

In July 2005 I was appointed by the Queen as a Member of the Privy Council.

I was made a life peer in 2005 and continue to sit in the House of Lords where I remain an active member, when my Scottish Parliament duties allow.

This introduction was written by Rt Hon George Foulkes MSP and is current as of July 2009

George is a member of the following committees:

Member of the Public Audit Committee

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Personal Interests & Political Activities

Contact Details

Some information about George

Member for:
Lothians

Party:
Scottish Labour

Date of Birth:
21 January 1942

Place of Birth:
Oswestry, United Kingdom

Family Information:
Married

Trade Union/Professional Membership:
GMB
Fabian Society
Co-operative Party

Education:
Keith Grammar School, Morayshire

Haberdashers' Aske’s School, Hampstead

University of Edinburgh, BSc in Psychology

Career History:
1963: Senior President of Edinburgh University Students’ Representative Council:

1964-1966: President, Scottish Union of Students

1966-1968: Director, European League for Economic Co-operation

1968-1969: Scottish organiser, European Movement

1969 – 1973: Director of Enterprise Youth

1973 – 1979: Director of Age Concern Scotland

1983 – 1985: Labour Spokesperson on Europe

1985 – 1992: Labour Spokesperson on Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

1992 – 1993: Labour Spokesperson on Defence, Disarmament and Arms Control

1994 - 1997: Labour Spokesperson on Overseas Development

1997 – 2001: Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of International Development

2001 – 2002: Minister of State, Scotland