Owen Thompson

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For the Illinois judge, see Owen P. Thompson.

The Right Honourable
Owen Thompson
MP
Official portrait, 2020
Chief Whip of the Scottish National Party
in the House of Commons
Assumed office
4 September 2023
LeaderStephen Flynn
Preceded byBrendan O'Hara
In office
9 March 2021 – 9 December 2022
LeaderIan Blackford
Preceded byPatrick Grady
Succeeded byMartin Docherty-Hughes
Member of Parliament
for Midlothian
Assumed office
12 December 2019
Preceded byDanielle Rowley
Majority5,705 (11.8%)
In office
7 May 2015 – 3 May 2017
Preceded byDavid Hamilton
Succeeded byDanielle Rowley
Personal details
Born (1978-03-17) 17 March 1978 (age 46)
Political partyScottish National Party
Alma materEdinburgh Napier University
WebsiteOfficial website

Owen George Thompson (born 17 March 1978)[1] is a Scottish National Party politician currently serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Midlothian. He was elected in 2015, defeated at the 2017 general election, and regained the seat at the 2019 general election.

Early life[edit]

Thompson is the son of the late Robert Thompson and Margaret Thompson.[2] He was brought up in Loanhead after moving there when he was seven.[3] He studied accounting and finance at Edinburgh Napier University.[4]

Political career[edit]

Thompson had previously been the leader of Midlothian Council. He was first elected to the council at the Loanhead by-election in 2005.[5] At the age of 27, he was Scotland's youngest councillor at the time.[6] He was then re-elected in the 2007 council election and again in the 2012 council election.[3][7] He became deputy leader of the council in 2012, and leader in November 2013, succeeding his party colleague Bob Constable.[6] He remained on the council until 2015.[2]

In December 2014, the Bonnyrigg, Loanhead and District SNP branch nominated Thompson to be the party's official candidate at the next general election.[8] At the 2015 general election, Thompson was elected as MP for Midlothian with 50.6% of the vote and a majority of 9,859.[9][10]

He was sworn into office at Westminster on 20 May 2015, and on the same day was given a position in the SNP Whips' Office under the SNP's chief whip, Mike Weir.[11]

At the 2017 general election, Thompson lost his seat to Danielle Rowley of the Labour Party, losing by 885 votes and receiving 34.4% of the vote.[12][13]

Thompson regained his seat at the 2019 general election, winning with 41.5% of the vote and a majority of 5,705.[14]

In March 2021, Thompson was appointed chief whip for the SNP in Westminster after the resignation of Patrick Grady.[15] He was dismissed by new leader Stephen Flynn in December 2022.[16] He returned to the position in September 2023.[17]

He was sworn into His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council on 10 April 2024 as part of the 2024 Special Honours[18][19]

Personal life[edit]

Thompson lists his recreations as football and computer games.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Brunskill, Ian, ed. (19 March 2020). The Times guide to the House of Commons 2019 : the definitive record of Britain's historic 2019 General Election. p. 272. ISBN 978-0-00-839258-1. OCLC 1129682574.
  2. ^ a b c "Thompson, Owen George, MP (SNP) Midlothian, 2015–17 and since 2019". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u283995. ISBN 978-0-19-954088-4. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Working together". Holyrood. 31 March 2014. Archived from the original on 6 October 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  4. ^ Swanson, Ian (9 May 2015). "SNP brings seismic shift to Edinburgh politics". Evening News. Johnston Press. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  5. ^ "SNP delight as they take Loanhead seat". Midlothian Advertiser. Johnston Press. 16 November 2005. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Midlothian elects Owen Thompson as council leader". Evening News. Johnston Press. 19 November 2013. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  7. ^ "Election 2015: Who are the 56 new SNP MPs?". BBC News. BBC. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  8. ^ "Councillor sets sights on Westminster". Midlothian Advertiser. Johnston Press. 11 December 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  9. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  10. ^ "Midlothian Parliamentary constituency". BBC. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
    - Tufft, Ben (10 May 2015). "Scottish MPs in Westminster: The full list of the SNP parliamentarians". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  11. ^ "SNP confirms group roles". Scottish National Party. 20 May 2015. Archived from the original on 21 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  12. ^ "Midlothian parliamentary constituency - Election 2017". BBC News. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  13. ^ "General Election: SNP reselects 54 MPs". www.scotsman.com.
  14. ^ "General Election Results 2019". Electoral Reform Society Results. Electoral Reform Society. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  15. ^ "Owen Thompson is the new SNP Chief Whip". Midlothian View. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  16. ^ "What does the SNP MP revolt mean for Nicola Sturgeon's future?". LBC. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  17. ^ "SNP announces frontbench reshuffle at Westminster". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Privy Council appointment: March 2024" (PDF). GOV.UK. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Orders for 10 April 2024" (PDF). Privy Council Office. Retrieved 11 April 2024.

External links[edit]

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Midlothian
2015–2017 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Midlothian
2019–present 		Incumbent
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