Neil Gray

Neil Gray
MP
SNP Spokesperson for Fair Work & Employment
Assumed office
30 September 2015
Preceded by Hannah Bardell
Member of Parliament
for Airdrie and Shotts
Assumed office
8 May 2015
Preceded by Pamela Nash
Majority 8,779 (19.82%)
Personal details
Born (1986-03-16) 16 March 1986
Kirkwall, Scotland
Political party Scottish National Party
Children 1 daughter
Alma mater University of Stirling

Neil Charles Gray (born 1986) is a Scottish National Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Airdrie & Shotts since the general election in May 2015.[1]

Gray was born and brought up in Orkney, and was educated at Kirkwall Grammar School. He graduated from the University of Stirling in 2008 with a first-class Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in politics and journalism.

Following his graduation, Gray was employed as a producer and reporter with BBC Radio Orkney from 2003 until 2008. He then worked as a press and research intern for the SNP parliamentary group at the Scottish Parliament for several months before being appointed as constituency office manager for Alex Neil MSP - a position he held until his election to Parliament.

The selection process for the Airdrie SNP candidacy, which Neil Gray ultimately won, was not without controversy. Former diplomat Craig Murray was nominated as a potential candidate at an Airdrie Branch meeting but did not make the final list as he failed SNP candidate vetting, whereupon he commented that "I think in both Airdrie & Shotts and in Falkirk it's evident who the party hierarchy wants to be the candidate."[2] Former Policeman and SNP Councillor Alan Beveridge resigned from the party in February 2015 after Neil Gray was selected, claiming that there was a "climate of fear, intimidation and false allegations within the party" which were highlighted in the selection process.[3][4]

In September 2016, Gray as a member of the new Joint Committee on the Palace of Westminster proposed "the Joint Committee declines to consider a draft Report until it has given full consideration to the possibility of constructing a permanent new Parliamentary building, while finding an alternative future use for the Palace of Westminster; notes that this option was included in the Pre-Feasibility Study and Preliminary Strategic Business Case published in October 2012 but was rejected by the House of Commons Commission and the House of Lords House Committee at that stage; and resolves to apply the same rigorous scrutiny to the possible construction of a new Parliamentary building as it has applied to the other options for delivering the Restoration and Renewal Programme, before making a recommendation about the best option for carrying out the works" [5] the committee voted 11/1 against this proposal.

Outside politics Gray was formerly a keen athlete, representing Scotland at 400m, until a serious knee injury ended his career in athletics.

See Also

Parliament of the United Kingdom Relocation

References

  1. ↑ "Airdrie & Shotts Parliamentary constituency". Election 2015 Results. BBC. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  2. ↑ Tom Gordon (2014-12-28). "Torture whistle-blower's anger at SNP 'stitch-up' after election block". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 2015-05-14.
  3. ↑ Andrew Whitaker (2015-02-10). "SNP councillors quit over candidacy selection row". The Scotsman. Retrieved 2015-05-14.
  4. ↑ "Lanarkshire councillors quit in SNP target area - BBC News". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-05-14.
  5. ↑ http://www.parliament.uk/documents/joint-committees/Palace%20of%20Westminster/Formal-minutes/Collated-formal-minutes-Committee-of-Palace-of-Westminster-2016-17-session.pdf
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Pamela Nash		 Member of Parliament
for Airdrie and Shotts
2015–present 		Incumbent
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