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Fergus Ewing
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Fergus Ewing
Fergus Stewart Ewing (born 23 September 1957) is a Scottish independent politician. Formerly a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he served as the Scottish Government's Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism from 2016 to 2021, having previously held two junior ministerial posts.
He was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) between 1999 and 2026, representing Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber until 2011, and then its successor seat Inverness and Nairn. From 2021 to 2025, Ewing was a perennial rebel in the Scottish Parliament, frequently voting against the SNP leadership and voicing discontent with government policy. This eventually led to a short suspension of the party whip in 2024 and his departure from the SNP in June 2025.
Born in Glasgow, Ewing attended Loretto School in Musselburgh. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with an LLB and worked as a solicitor in the two decades prior to becoming an MSP. In the first election to the Scottish Parliament, which took place in 1999, both his wife, Margaret Ewing, and mother, Winnie Ewing, were elected to the parliament alongside him. In 2011, his sister Annabelle Ewing became an MSP too. Following the SNP victory in the 2007 Scottish Parliament election Ewing held a series of posts in government until his departure in 2021. After that he became a vocal critic of government policy and was particularly opposed to the SNP's cooperation agreement with the Scottish Greens.
In 2025, he announced that he would stand against the SNP in the Inverness and Nairn constituency as an independent candidate in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election. This bid for re-election was unsuccessful and he came third behind the SNP and Scottish Liberal Democrats, with a total of 7,840 votes, or, 21.3% of the overall vote.
Ewing is the son of the veteran Scottish nationalist Winnie Ewing, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons, as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), and an MSP. His father, Stewart, was an accountant who also served as Winnie Ewing's election agent and had been an SNP councillor in Glasgow.
Educated at Loretto School, in Musselburgh, he studied law at the University of Glasgow where he was a member of the Glasgow University Scottish Nationalist Association. At the age of 18, he was employed as his mother's secretary in the European Parliament. Before his election to the Scottish Parliament in 1999, Ewing worked as a solicitor for around 20 years and ran his own legal practice.
Ewing unsuccessfully contested the constituency of Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber in the 1992 UK general election. The seat was a four way marginal with only 3.4% of the vote separating the first and fourth placed candidates. He was again unsuccessful when contesting the new Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber constituency in the 1997 UK general election.
In the Scottish Parliament election of 1999, he was elected to represent Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber in the parliament. His mother, Winnie Ewing, and his wife, Margaret Ewing, were also successfully elected to the parliament. He was re-elected in the 2003 Scottish Parliament election.
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Fergus Ewing
Fergus Stewart Ewing (born 23 September 1957) is a Scottish independent politician. Formerly a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he served as the Scottish Government's Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism from 2016 to 2021, having previously held two junior ministerial posts.
He was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) between 1999 and 2026, representing Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber until 2011, and then its successor seat Inverness and Nairn. From 2021 to 2025, Ewing was a perennial rebel in the Scottish Parliament, frequently voting against the SNP leadership and voicing discontent with government policy. This eventually led to a short suspension of the party whip in 2024 and his departure from the SNP in June 2025.
Born in Glasgow, Ewing attended Loretto School in Musselburgh. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with an LLB and worked as a solicitor in the two decades prior to becoming an MSP. In the first election to the Scottish Parliament, which took place in 1999, both his wife, Margaret Ewing, and mother, Winnie Ewing, were elected to the parliament alongside him. In 2011, his sister Annabelle Ewing became an MSP too. Following the SNP victory in the 2007 Scottish Parliament election Ewing held a series of posts in government until his departure in 2021. After that he became a vocal critic of government policy and was particularly opposed to the SNP's cooperation agreement with the Scottish Greens.
In 2025, he announced that he would stand against the SNP in the Inverness and Nairn constituency as an independent candidate in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election. This bid for re-election was unsuccessful and he came third behind the SNP and Scottish Liberal Democrats, with a total of 7,840 votes, or, 21.3% of the overall vote.
Ewing is the son of the veteran Scottish nationalist Winnie Ewing, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons, as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), and an MSP. His father, Stewart, was an accountant who also served as Winnie Ewing's election agent and had been an SNP councillor in Glasgow.
Educated at Loretto School, in Musselburgh, he studied law at the University of Glasgow where he was a member of the Glasgow University Scottish Nationalist Association. At the age of 18, he was employed as his mother's secretary in the European Parliament. Before his election to the Scottish Parliament in 1999, Ewing worked as a solicitor for around 20 years and ran his own legal practice.
Ewing unsuccessfully contested the constituency of Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber in the 1992 UK general election. The seat was a four way marginal with only 3.4% of the vote separating the first and fourth placed candidates. He was again unsuccessful when contesting the new Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber constituency in the 1997 UK general election.
In the Scottish Parliament election of 1999, he was elected to represent Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber in the parliament. His mother, Winnie Ewing, and his wife, Margaret Ewing, were also successfully elected to the parliament. He was re-elected in the 2003 Scottish Parliament election.
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