Michael Matheson (politician)

Michael Matheson ( born September 8, 1970 in Glasgow ) is a Scottish politician and member of the Scottish National Party ( SNP).

Matheson visited the St John Bosco Secondary School in Glasgow and Queen Margaret College, which he left with a bachelor 's degree in occupational therapy. At the Open University, he obtained first a Bachelor's degree in applied social sciences, and then a diploma. Matheson is married and father of three sons.

Political career

For the first time Matheson stepped up to the general election in 1997 to national elections. He represented the constituency of Hamilton North and Bellshill, but was defeated John Reid, the candidate of the Labour Party clearly. In the Scottish Parliament elections in 1999 Matheson ran as candidate of the SNP in the constituency of Falkirk West, however, was able to record only the third highest number of votes for himself after the nonparty Dennis Canavan and the Labour candidate. On the basis of the election results yet he preferred as an emissary of the election Region Central Scotland one on the regional list in the newly created Scottish Parliament. In the SNP shadow cabinet this legislature Matheson was assigned as Deputy Secretary of State for Justice. In the following 2003 parliamentary elections Matheson ran again for Falkirk West. Although he received significantly fewer votes than Dennis Canavan, but this time was able to combine the second highest number of votes to be before the Labour candidate. Again Matheson received but on the regional list a parliamentary seat. In a new shadow cabinet Matheson held between September 2004 and 2006, the position of the Minister of Culture and Sports. After Dennis Canavan no longer took on the parliamentary elections in 2007, finally succeeded Matheson first time to obtain the direct mandate of the constituency, which he defended in the parliamentary elections of 2011. Since 2011, Matheson 's Minister of Health.