Wikipedia

Jamie Halcro Johnston

Jamie Halcro Johnston
MSP
Official portrait, 2017
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Highlands and Islands
(1 of 7 Regional MSPs)
Incumbent
Assumed office
20 June 2017
Preceded byDouglas Ross[a]
Scottish Conservative portfolios
2021–2024Shadow Minister for Business, Trade, Tourism and Enterprise
2024–presentShadow Minister for Agriculture, Connectivity and the Islands
Personal details
BornJamie Halcro Johnston
(1975-10-08) 8 October 1975 (age 50)
Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Political partyConservative
Alma materUniversity of Exeter
WebsiteOfficial website

Jamie Halcro Johnston (born 8 October 1975) is a British politician who is a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Highlands and Islands region since 2017. A member of the Scottish Conservative Party, he also serves as their Shadow Minister for Business, Trade, Tourism and Enterprise.

Background

[edit]

Halcro Johnston was brought up at his family home in Orphir in Orkney[citation needed]. His father, Hugh Halcro Johnston, previously served as Convener of Orkney Islands Council. His great-great uncle is Henry Halcro Johnston, a botanist, British Army Officer and Scotland rugby union international.[1]

Educated at Radley College, Halcro Johnston studied at Coventry University and the University of Exeter, where he received a BA (Hons) in Ancient History. He was previously employed by the Financial Times in London and, between 2003 and 2007, he worked as an adviser to a number of Scottish Conservative MSPs, before moving to a position at Holyrood magazine.[2][3][4]

Political career

[edit]

Halcro Johnston ran as the Scottish Conservatives' candidate in Moray at the 2005 UK general election, finishing runner up with 8,520 votes (22%).[5]

Halcro Johnston later stood for election to the Scottish Parliament at the 2007 election, coming last with 4,635 votes (11.7%), in Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber.[6][7]

At the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, Halcro Johnston contested the Orkney constituency, where he took 686 votes.[8]

He stood again in Orkney at the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, finishing third with 435 votes (4.1%).[9]Halcro Johnston was also placed fourth on the party list for the Highlands and Islands region.[10]The party, having gained 44,693 votes in the region, were entitled to three list seats with Halcro Johnston missing out.[11]

Halcro Johnston was the Conservative candidate for Orkney and Shetland at the 2017 general election, where he took fourth place with 2,024 votes (8.7%).[12]

In the Scottish Parliament

[edit]

On 20 June 2017, Halcro Johnston was moved up the list to succeed Douglas Ross as a Highlands and Islands Member of the Scottish Parliament, after the latter was elected as an MP in the general election.[13] [14]

After entering the Scottish Parliament, he was appointed by party leader Ruth Davidson as the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Shadow Minister for Jobs, Employability and Training.[15] He served as Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism, being appointed by leader Douglas Ross in 2020.[16]

In the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, Halcro Johnston stood in the Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituency, finishing in second place with 19.3% of the vote.[17][18] He was placed fourth again on the Highlands and Islands regional list, though was re-elected this time, with the Scottish Conservatives increasing their number of MSPs in the region from three to four, at the expense of Scottish Labour.[19][20]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Normally, regional MSPs do not have individual predecessors and successors. However, Ross retired his seat during a sitting parliament so was succeeded by Halcro Johnston.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Local MSP helps rekindle the 'Auld Alliance' against French Parliament". Inside Moray. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  2. ^ "Jamie Halcro Johnston MSP". Highlands and Islands Conservatives. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  3. ^ "Jamie Halcro Johnston – Careers and Employability". University of Exeter. Archived from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 11 September 2018.|
  4. ^ "About". Jamie Halcro Johnston MSP website. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  5. ^ "BBC News - Election 2005 - Result in Moray". BBC News. 6 May 2005. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  6. ^ "Inverness East, Nairn & Lochaber". The Herald. 4 May 2007. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  7. ^ "2007 Election Results". Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  8. ^ "2011 Election Results". Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  9. ^ "Orkney Islands - Scottish Parliament election 2016". BBC News. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  10. ^ "Scottish Parliament elections - Highlands and Islands region". Who Can I Vote For?. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  11. ^ "Highlands and Islands – Scottish Parliament electoral region – Election 2016 – BBC News". Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Orkney and Shetland general election results 2017". UK Parliament. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  13. ^ "Two new Conservative MSPs sworn in at Holyrood". BBC News. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  14. ^ Gordon, Tom (13 June 2017). "Tory struggle to fill MSP vacancy after general election success". the Herald. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  15. ^ Kirkaldy, Liam (28 June 2017). "Ruth Davidson unveils reshuffled Scottish Tory shadow cabinet". Holyrood Magazine. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  16. ^ "Halcro Johnston appointed to the Shadow Cabinet". www.shetlandtimes.co.uk. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  17. ^ "Skye, Lochaber & Badenoch - Scottish Parliament election 2021". BBC News. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  18. ^ "Scottish Parliamentary Election 2021 result for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituency". Highland Council. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  19. ^ "Conservatives gain one MSP in Highlands and Islands regional list vote as Labour lose out". Grampian Online. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  20. ^ "Highlands and Islands 2021 - Ballot Box Scotland". Ballot Box Scotland. Retrieved 30 July 2025.
[edit]