Johann Lamont

Johann MacDougall Lamont (; born 11 July 1957) is a Scottish Labour Co-operative politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2011 to 2014. She was previously a junior Scottish Executive minister from 2004 to 2007 and Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party from 2008 until her election to the leadership in 2011. In addition to her ministerial and leadership roles, she has been a campaigner on equality issues and violence against women throughout her political career.

Born in Glasgow, Lamont attended Woodside Secondary School and obtained a degree from the University of Glasgow. After studying for teaching qualifications at Jordanhill College, she became a schoolteacher. Active in the Labour Party since she was at university, Lamont served on its Scottish Executive Committee, and chaired it in 1993. With the establishment of a devolved legislature in Scotland, she was elected as the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Pollok in 1999. Having been appointed convener of the Scottish Parliament's Social Justice Committee in 2001, she obtained her first ministerial role in a Labour–Liberal Democrat coalition in October 2004 and served until its defeat by the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 2007.

Lamont stood for the Scottish Labour leadership following the resignation of Iain Gray in the wake of the party's defeat at the 2011 Scottish Parliament election; its second consecutive defeat. Following a review of how the Labour Party in Scotland would be structured, she became its first overall leader. She stated Labour lost the 2011 election because it had lost direction, and initiated a review of Scottish Labour policy on issues like devolution and the party's commitment to free universal public services. Following the SNP Government's announcement of a referendum on Scottish independence, she was a key figure in the Better Together campaign; a cross-party movement that sought to keep Scotland part of the United Kingdom. She resigned as Scottish Labour leader in October 2014, making the announcement in a ''Daily Record'' interview in which she claimed that senior figures within the UK Labour Party had undermined her attempts to reform the Scottish party, and treated it "like a branch office of London". Following a leadership election to replace her, she was succeeded in December 2014 by former Secretary of State for Scotland Jim Murphy.

Lamont's work as Scottish Labour leader won her accolades at the Scottish Politician of the Year Awards, for Political Impact of the Year in 2012 and Debater of the Year in 2013. In parliamentary debates, she was perceived by commentators such as ''The Scotsman''s Andrew Whitaker as being an effective opponent to First Minister Alex Salmond, but others, including Richard Seymour of ''The Guardian'', criticised her for clumsiness during television interviews. Provided by Wikipedia