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| El muy honorableDonald Dewar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Dewar c. 1999-2000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Primer Ministro de Escocia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| En el cargo 17 de mayo de 1999 - 11 de octubre de 2000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monarca | Isabel II | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Diputado | Jim Wallace | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Precedido por | Posición establecida | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sucesor | Jim Wallace (en funciones) Henry McLeish | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Líder del Partido Laborista Escocés | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| En funciones del 7 de mayo de 1999 al 11 de octubre de 2000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Líder del partido del Reino Unido | Tony Blair | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Precedido por | Posición establecida | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sucesor | Henry McLeish | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretario de Estado de Escocia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| En el cargo 2 de mayo de 1997 - 17 de mayo de 1999 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Primer ministro | Tony Blair | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Precedido por | Michael Forsyth | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sucesor | John Reid | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Detalles personales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nació | Donald Campbell Dewar 21 de agosto de 1937 Glasgow , Escocia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fallecido | 11 de octubre de 2000 (63 años) Edimburgo , Escocia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Causa de la muerte | Hemorragia cerebral | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Partido político | Labor escocesa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Esposos) | Alison McNair ( M. 1964; div. 1973) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Niños | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Educación | Universidad de Glasgow | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ministerio Dewar
Elecciones generales del Reino Unido
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Donald Campbell Dewar (21 de agosto de 1937 - 11 de octubre de 2000) fue un político escocés que se desempeñó como Primer Ministro de Escocia y Líder del Partido Laborista Escocés de 1999 a 2000. Anteriormente se desempeñó como Secretario de Estado de Escocia de 1997 a 1999. Él fue miembro del Parlamento (MP) de Aberdeen South de 1966 a 1970 y de Glasgow Anniesland , anteriormente Glasgow Garscadden , de 1978 a 2000 . También fue miembro del Parlamento escocés (MSP) para el escaño equivalente de1999 a 2000.
Dewar entró en la política por primera vez a principios de la década de 1960 y fue elegido miembro del Parlamento por Aberdeen South en las elecciones generales de 1966 . Después de perder su asiento en 1970 , sirvió en la Cámara de los Comunes de nuevo desde 1978 hasta su muerte en 2000. Se desempeñó como Secretario de Estado para Escocia en el primer ministro británico , Tony Blair 's Gabinete de 1997 a 1999. Dewar fue un defensor de Devolución de Escocia , campaña con éxito para un Parlamento escocés en el referéndum de devolución de Escocia de 1997 .
Habiendo liderado la campaña laborista en el período previo a las primeras elecciones al Parlamento escocés , posteriormente se convirtió en miembro del Parlamento escocés (MSP) por Glasgow Anniesland el 6 de mayo de 1999, y fue nombrado líder del Partido Laborista escocés un día después y se convirtió en el primer Primer Ministro escocés como jefe de un gobierno de coalición descentralizado con los Demócratas Liberales . En octubre de 2000, Dewar murió de una hemorragia cerebral a la edad de 63 años mientras aún estaba en el cargo. Henry McLeish lo sucedió como primer ministro y líder laborista escocés .
A menudo considerado como el padre de la nación , [1] Dewar es conocido por su trabajo y compromiso con el restablecimiento del Parlamento escocés y por ser el primer ministro inaugural de Escocia . [2] [3]
Vida temprana y carrera [ editar ]
Dewar nació en Glasgow el 21 de agosto de 1937 como hijo único de Alasdair (1897-1973) y Mary Dewar (de soltera Bennett). Su padre era dermatólogo y ex médico de cabecera. Ambos padres de Dewar tuvieron mala salud durante su infancia; su padre contrajo tuberculosis y su madre sufrió de un tumor cerebral benigno cuando Donald era joven. [4]
Asistió a la Academia de Glasgow , y fue admitido en la Universidad de Glasgow en 1957, donde obtuvo un MA grado en Historia en 1961, una segunda clase LLB grado en 1964, y fue editor de la Universidad de Glasgow Guardián .
Dewar conoció a varios futuros políticos en la Sociedad Dialéctica de la universidad , entre ellos John Smith (que más tarde se convertiría en líder del Partido Laborista ), Sir Menzies Campbell (que más tarde se convertiría en líder de los Demócratas Liberales ) y Lord Irvine de Lairg (que se desempeñaría como Lord Canciller en el mismo gabinete que Dewar). En la universidad, también se desempeñó como presidente del Club Laboral de la Universidad de Glasgow y presidente del Sindicato de la Universidad de Glasgow .
Early political career[edit]
Member of Parliament[edit]
He worked as a solicitor in Glasgow after graduating from university, and was also a member of the Labour Party, and soon turned his sights towards being elected to parliament. In 1962, he was selected as the Labour candidate for the Aberdeen South constituency. In the 1964 general election, he failed to win the seat, but won it at the 1966 general election at the age of 28—defeating Priscilla Tweedsmuir by 1,799 votes.[5]
In his maiden speech to the House of Commons in the same year, Dewar spoke against a proposed increase on potato tax. His speech became his first political success: as the tax was repealed the following year in 1967. Also in 1967, Dewar was made a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Education Secretary Anthony Crosland, with whom Dewar later confessed to having never establishing a rapport with, as Dewar said Crosland was a "very odd man".
Dewar remained in that position at the Department of Education until 1969, in which year he opposed a visit to Aberdeen by the Springbok rugby team and staged a silent vigil near the team's ground. In April 1968, he was proposed for a Minister of State position by Roy Jenkins, but was not appointed. Dewar lost his constituency seat to the Conservative candidate Iain Sproat at the 1970 general election by over 1,000 votes.
Out of parliament[edit]
Dewar spent much of the 1970s looking for another parliamentary seat. He hosted a Friday evening talk show on Radio Clyde, and in June 1971 was beaten by Dennis Canavan when he applied for the seat of West Stirlingshire. He worked as a solicitor for much of that decade and became a reporter on children's panels and was involved with the Lanarkshire local authority. Dewar became a partner in Ross Harper Murphy, in 1975.
Return to Westminster[edit]
Donald Dewar was selected for the seat Glasgow Garscadden by a majority of three, after Dewar's friend in the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers MP Willie Small died unexpectedly. He was returned to parliament at a by-election on 13 April 1978, a crucial victory which was seen as halting the rise of the Scottish National Party. In Scotland's first referendum on devolution, held in March 1979, he campaigned for a "Yes" vote alongside the Conservative Alick Buchanan-Smith and the Liberal Russell Johnston. Though they won a narrow majority, it fell short of the 40% required, contributing to the downfall of the Callaghan Government, in May 1979.
Opposition[edit]
Dewar gained a parliamentary platform as chairman of the Scottish Affairs Select Committee. After a year honing his inquisitorial skills, he joined the front bench in November 1980 as a Scottish affairs spokesman when Michael Foot became party leader. In 1981, as the Labour Party divided itself further due to internal disagreement, Dewar was almost deselected in his constituency by hard left activists, but he successfully defended himself against this threat.
He rose quickly through the ranks, becoming Shadow Scottish Secretary in November 1983. On 21 December 1988, Dewar was in Lockerbie after the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103,[6] as the member of the Shadow Cabinet in charge of Scottish affairs. In 1992, John Smith made him Shadow Social security Secretary and three years later, Dewar was made a Chief Whip for the Labour Party by Tony Blair.
In government[edit]
At the 1997 general election, he became MP for Glasgow Anniesland, which was mostly the same constituency with minor boundary changes. Labour won this election by a landslide, and Dewar was given the post of Secretary of State for Scotland. He was able to start the devolution process he dreamt of years earlier, and worked tirelessly on creating the Scotland Act, popularly referred to as "Smith's unfinished business". When ratified, this was to give Scotland its first Parliament for nearly 300 years.
First Minister of Scotland[edit]
| Premiership of Donald Dewar 17 May 1999 – 11 October 2000 | |||
Premier | Donald Dewar | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Cabinet | Dewar ministry | ||
| Party | Scottish Labour Party | ||
| Election | 1999 | ||
| Appointed by | Elizabeth II | ||
| Seat | Bute House | ||
Election and nomination[edit]
In January 1998, he confirmed that he would stand for a seat in the Scottish Parliament.[7] The first elections to the Scottish Parliament were held on 6 May 1999, with Dewar leading the Scottish Labour Party against their main opponents, the Scottish National Party led by Alex Salmond.
He was elected as the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Anniesland, having the unusual distinction of being both an MP and MSP for the same constituency. Although Scottish Labour won more seats than any other party, they did not have a majority in Parliament to allow them to form an Executive without the help of a smaller party. A deal was agreed with the Scottish Liberal Democrats to form a coalition, with Dewar agreeing to their demand for the abolition of up front tuition fees for university students.[8]
—Dewar, at the official opening of the Scottish Parliament on 1 July 1999.[9]
On 13 May 1999, Dewar was nominated as First Minister, and was officially appointed by the Queen on 17 May at a ceremony in the Palace of Holyroodhouse. He later travelled to the Court of Session to be sworn in by the Lord President and receive the Great Seal of Scotland.[10]
Government[edit]
On 16 June, Dewar set out the legislative programme for the Executive which included: an Education bill to improve standards in Scottish schools; land reform to give right of access to the countryside, a bill to abolish the feudal system of land tenure; and a bill to establish National Parks in Scotland.[11]
One of the first scandals to hit the new Scottish Parliament occurred when allegations that the lobbying arm of public relations company Beattie Media had privileged access to ministers were published, prompting Dewar to ask the standards committee to investigate the reports.[12] The Minister for Finance, Jack McConnell, was called to appear before the standards committee during the investigation although he was later cleared of any wrongdoing and the committee declared there was no evidence he had been influenced from lobbying by Beattie Media.[13]
Dewar also threatened to sack any minister or aide who briefed the media against another member of the Scottish Executive, following public rows between Jack McConnell and Minister of Health and Community Care Susan Deacon over the budget allocated to health .[14]
Death and funeral[edit]
In April 2000, Dewar was admitted to hospital for tests on his heart, following a previous test where a minor irregularity was discovered.[15] In May 2000, he had surgery to repair a leaking heart valve, and was forced to take a three-month break from Parliament, with Deputy First Minister Jim Wallace taking over as Acting First Minister.[16] He returned to work on 14 August 2000.[17]
Dewar dealt with the 2000 exam results controversy and the lorry drivers' strike, and attended the Labour Party conference in Brighton, but at the end of September he told the historian Tom Devine in Dublin that if there was no surge of the energy of old, he would have to reappraise the situation within a few months.[18]
On 10 October 2000 around lunchtime, Dewar sustained a fall. He seemed fine at first, but later that day suffered a massive brain haemorrhage which was possibly triggered by the anticoagulant medication he was taking following heart surgery. He died the following day in Edinburgh's Western General Hospital, never having regained consciousness. He was 63 years old.
Dewar's funeral service was held at Glasgow Cathedral, he was cremated on 18 October 2000 and his ashes were scattered at Lochgilphead in Argyll.
"Although he has become something of a political legend, Donald would have abhorred any attempt to turn him into some kind of secular saint. He would have been horrified at a Diana-style out-pouring of synthetic grief at his untimely death." — Iain MacWhirter, Sunday Herald, 15 October 2000.
Legacy[edit]
Dewar's work for the Scottish Parliament has led him to be called the "Father of the Nation".[20][21]
In May 2002, then Prime Minister Tony Blair unveiled a statue of Donald Dewar at the top of Glasgow's Buchanan Street, a street in Glasgow city centre. In keeping with his famous unkempt appearance, it showed Dewar wearing a slightly crushed jacket.
The statue was taken down in October 2005 to be cleaned, and was re-erected on 6-foot (1.8 m) high plinth in December in an effort to protect it from vandalism. On the base of the statue were inscribed the opening words of the Scotland Act: "There Shall Be A Scottish Parliament", a phrase to which Dewar himself famously said, "I like that!"
Dewar called the Old Royal High School on Calton Hill in Edinburgh a "nationalist shibboleth", mainly because it had been the proposed site of the Scottish Assembly in the 1979 referendum. Dewar's opposition to the Calton Hill site partly contributed to the selection of the Holyrood site, which proved expensive.
The First ScotRail Class 334 train 334001 was named Donald Dewar in his memory. The "Dewar Arts Award" was created by the Scottish Executive in 2002 dedicated to his memory. This award supports talented young Scottish artists.[22]
Personal life[edit]
On 20 July 1964, Dewar married Alison Mary McNair, with whom he had two children: a daughter, Marion, and a son, Ian. In 1972, McNair separated from Dewar and entered a relationship with the then Derry Irvine, a prominent Scottish barrister in London. Dewar and his wife divorced in 1973, and he never remarried.[citation needed] Dewar and Lord Irvine of Lairg never reconciled, even though they later served in the same Cabinet from May 1997 until 1999.
In September 2009, Dennis Canavan said Dewar reacted callously when his son was diagnosed with skin cancer in 1989. The disease eventually killed him. Canavan said Dewar remarked, "Oh no! That's all we need. He was mad enough before but I shudder to think what he'll be like now."[23]
Dewar amassed a personal fortune in excess of £2,000,000 including public utility shares, antiques and artwork with a value of over £400,000.[24]
References[edit]
- ^ "Profile: Donald Dewar the architect of the Scottish Parliament". Holyrood Website. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
- ^ "'Father of nation' dies". BBC News. 11 October 2000.
- ^ "The Father of the Nation, who made good on the unfinished business of devolution". The Independent. 22 September 2011.
- ^ Allan 2000, para. 5
- ^ Chambers Biographical Dictionary, 2007
- ^ The Scottish Government, 1998
- ^ "Dewar to stand for Scottish parliament". BBC News. 8 January 2008. Archived from the original on 9 April 2003. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
- ^ The Guardian, 1999
- ^ Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations
- ^ BBC News, 1999a
- ^ BBC News, 1999b
- ^ "Probe launched into lobbying allegations" Archived 22 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News
- ^ "Scotland Standards watchdog clears McConnell" Archived 15 December 2003 at the Wayback Machine BBC News
- ^ Public Finance- 14 July 2000 Archived 7 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ BBC News 2000a
- ^ BBC News 2000b
- ^ BBC News 2000c
- ^ "Donald Dewar" Archived 13 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Electronic Scotland, October 2000
- ^ BBC News 2002
- ^ "'Father of nation' dies". BBC News. 11 October 2000. Archived from the original on 17 December 2006. Retrieved 29 March 2010.
- ^ Grice, Andrew (12 October 2000). "The Father of the Nation, who made good on the unfinished business of devolution". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 17 September 2009. Retrieved 29 March 2010.
- ^ "The Dewar Awards". Dewar Awards. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 25 May 2016.
- ^ The Herald 2009
- ^ Womersley, Tara (2 July 2001). "£2m legacy of Dewar, the canniest of Scots". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 23 March 2014.
Sources[edit]
- Hutcheon, Paul (3 August 2009). "Dewar savaged as 'hypocritical and petty' in Canavan book". The Herald. Glasgow.[permanent dead link]
- Torrance, David (2006), The Scottish Secretaries, Birlinn
- "Lockerbie Bombing: 10th Anniversary". Edinburgh: Government of the United Kingdom. 22 December 1998.
- "Lawyer in Irvine". Irvine: Usman. 21 December 1999.
- MacAskill, Ewen; Seenan, Gerard (14 May 1999). "PR deal will end councils stranglehold". The Guardian. London.
- "UK Politics – Dewar appointed as first minister". BBC News. 17 May 1999. a.
- "Dewar's statement to Parliament". BBC News. 16 June 1999. b.
- "Blair unveils Dewar memorial". BBC News. 7 May 2002.
- "Dewar undergoes heart test". BBC News. 25 April 2000. a.
- "Dewar takes post-op steps". BBC News. 11 May 2000. b.
- "First Minister returns to the fray". BBC News. 14 August 2000. c.
- Allan, Charlie (12 October 2000). "A man apart, yet a man of the people". The Herald. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016.
External links[edit]
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Donald Dewar. |
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Donald Dewar
- Works by or about Donald Dewar in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Priscilla Buchan | Member of Parliament for Aberdeen South 1966–1970 | Succeeded by Iain Sproat |
| Preceded by William Small | Member of Parliament for Glasgow Garscadden 1978–1997 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Glasgow Anniesland 1997–2000 | Succeeded by John Robertson |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Michael Forsyth | Secretary of State for Scotland 1997–1999 | Succeeded by John Reid |
| New office | First Minister of Scotland 1999–2000 | Succeeded by Jim Wallace Acting |
| Party political offices | ||
| New office | Leader of the Scottish Labour Party 1999–2000 | Succeeded by Henry McLeish |
| Scottish Parliament | ||
| New constituency | Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow Anniesland 1999–2000 | Succeeded by Bill Butler |
