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It was solely in February this 12 months that Jackson Carlaw took on the chief function completely
Jackson Carlaw has abruptly resigned as Scottish Tory chief simply six months after profitable the job. Who’s the Eastwood MSP, and what lies behind his resignation?
Raised in Newton Mearns in East Renfrewshire, Mr Carlaw labored as a automotive salesman for 25 years earlier than his election to the Scottish Parliament.
A longstanding member of the Conservatives, he stood unsuccessfully for the celebration within the 1982 Queens Park by-election after which the 1983 basic election in Glasgow Pollock.
He held a spread of positions with the celebration, together with chairing the Scottish Younger Conservatives and the Eastwood department of the celebration, in addition to having two spells as deputy chairman of the Scottish celebration.
Following the institution of the present Scottish Parliament in 1999, Mr Carlaw stood unsuccessfully because the Tory candidate for Eastwood in 2003, 2007 and 2011, with the seat held every time by Labour’s Ken Macintosh.
Nonetheless, in 2007 he entered Holyrood through the West of Scotland record, serving two phrases as a regional MSP earlier than lastly unseating Mr Macintosh in 2016.
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Mr Carlaw by no means shied away from dressing up for “put on it pink” breast most cancers consciousness occasions at Holyrood
Mr Carlaw, who’s married with two kids, served as Tory well being spokesman at Holyrood for nearly 9 years, and sat on Holyrood’s Europe committee.
He was a vocal campaigner for girls who suffered problems from mesh surgical procedure, and was an enthusiastic participant in “put on it pink” breast most cancers consciousness photocalls at Holyrood.
When Annabel Goldie resigned as Scottish Conservative chief in 2011, Mr Carlaw stood as a candidate to exchange her.
He in the end completed third, behind Ruth Davidson and Murdo Fraser, however was subsequently appointed as Ms Davidson’s deputy.
This noticed him step up as performing chief when she went on maternity go away between September 2018 and Could 2019, and once more when she resigned from the highest job that August.
Mr Carlaw was the clear favorite to take the job full time, however was thrust into one other management contest when Michelle Ballantyne stated she would stand too to forestall a “coronation”.
The 61-year-old stated he wished the celebration to seem to “center Scotland”, with insurance policies centered on schooling and tax cuts, and stated he was aiming to “take down” Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP.
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Mr Carlaw made it very clear that he thought he was the person for the job – and when he gained comfortably, he trumpeted his share of the vote as being larger than that achieved by Boris Johnson, David Cameron or Ruth Davidson.
He stated he had a “clear mandate from the celebration in Scotland” to make modifications and to guide them into the 2021 Holyrood elections.
Nonetheless, simply six months later, Mr Carlaw seems to have had a change of coronary heart.
He now says that he’s “not, within the current circumstances, the particular person finest positioned” to guide the celebration or the defence of the UK union.
He stated: “I merely imagine {that a} new chief will probably be ready, as we recuperate from the Covid emergency, to make the case for the Scottish Conservatives and the Union higher than me. That’s all that issues.”
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Mr Carlaw didn’t again Boris Johnson within the Tory management contest, however has since defended the prime minister
Prime Minister Boris Johnson praised Mr Carlaw as a “large servant” to the Scottish Tories, however the two haven’t all the time seen eye to eye.
Mr Carlaw campaigned for Stay within the 2016 EU referendum – though he embraced Brexit after the end result – and backed Mr Johnson’s management rival Jeremy Hunt within the UK Tory management contest.
And in Could the Scottish Tory chief known as for Mr Johnson’s senior advisor Dominic Cummings to resign after he travelled to County Durham in the course of the coronavirus lockdown.
Nonetheless the 2 did meet when Mr Johnson visited Scotland on 23 July, with the Scottish Tory chief praising the prime minister as being “resolute on our United Kingdom”.
Additionally current at that assembly was Moray MP Douglas Ross – who many have tipped because the probably candidate to exchange Mr Carlaw as chief.