Alan Brown (Scottish politician)

Alan Brown (born 12 August 1970) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kilmarnock and Loudoun since gaining the seat in the 2015 general election.[1] In 2017, Brown was appointed as the SNP Westminster spokesperson on Transports, Infrastructure and Energy.[2]

Alan Brown

MP
Brown in 2019
SNP Spokesperson on Transport, Infrastructure and Energy
Assumed office
20 June 2017
LeaderIan Blackford
Preceded byDrew Hendry
Member of Parliament
for Kilmarnock and Loudoun
Assumed office
7 May 2015
Preceded byCathy Jamieson
Majority12,659 (26.5%)
Personal details
Born (1970-08-12) 12 August 1970
Newmilns, Scotland
NationalityScottish
Political partyScottish National Party
Children2 sons
Alma materUniversity of Glasgow
WebsiteOfficial website

Background and education

Brown was born on 12 August 1970 to parents Eric and Irene in Kilmarnock; Brown has lived there all his life.[3] He attended his local primary school and Loudoun Academy. He subsequently attended Glasgow University, where he graduated with an honours degree in civil engineering.[4] He worked, both in the public and private sectors, as a Civil engineer.[4] He is a lifelong supporter of Kilmarnock Football Club.

Political career

Councillor

He was first elected as a SNP councillor in the 2007 East Ayrshire Council election for the Irvine Valley ward, topping the poll with 1,497 first preferences. He was re-elected in the 2012 East Ayrshire Council election, taking the second seat on this occasion with 1,252 first preferences but again exceeding the quota. A senior figure in the SNP delegation he has held positions Housing and Strategic Planning & Resources.[5]

Member of Parliament

Brown was selected to contest the Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency for the Scottish National Party at the 2015 general election and received 30,000 votes (a 55.7% share); defeating the sitting Labour MP, Cathy Jamieson. The first Scottish seat to declared on election night, the seat was the first of fifty SNP net gains made at that year's general election.[6] He made his maiden speech on 22 June, in which he quoted the poem Is There for Honest Poverty by Robert Burns.[7][8]

In 2016, Brown was one of 58 Scottish MPs who voted against the renewal of the UK's Trident nuclear programme. He claimed the programme had not served as a deterrent and that each job created through it cost the UK taxpayer £6.5 million.[9][10]

Brown has revealed that in Parliament, Hansard reporters often ask him to provide written ‘translations’ of his questions to the Commons due to his thick Ayrshire accent being difficult to understand. Even so, he has said he would not alter his accent because his constituents “know me locally and know how I talk, they would actually question what was happening if my accent changed when I came down to Westminster”.[11][12][13][14]

General election, 2017

Despite the SNP losing seats and support at the 2017 general election, Brown was re-elected as MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun with a majority of 6,269 votes.[15]

SNP front bench appointment

On 20 June 2017, Brown was appointed to the SNP Westminster front bench team as the SNP spokesperson on Transport, Infrastructure and Energy.[2]

Personal life

Brown is married and has two sons.[4]

References
  1. "Kilmarnock & Loudoun Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  2. "Alan Brown MP".
  3. "Alan Brown as SNP MP for Kilmarnock & Loudoun".
  4. Burns, Janice (1 June 2015). "Meet your new Scottish MPs: #17 Alan Brown, Kilmarnock and Loudoun". The National. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  5. Brown, Alan. "Cllr Alan Brown". SNP Party Website. SNP. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  6. "Kilmarnock and Loudoun". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  7. "Local MP makes maiden speech at Westminster". Cumnock Chronicle. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  8. "Education and Adoption Bill - Hansard". hansard.parliament.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  9. Russell, Ian (20 July 2016). "MP Alan Brown says decision to renew Trident was "extremely disappointing"". dailyrecord. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  10. Association, Press (19 July 2016). "How your MP voted on Trident". the Guardian. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  11. "Scottish MP Alan Brown says ministers don't understand his thick accent". Sky News. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  12. "SNP MP Alan Brown claims Scots accent confuses parliament". TotalPolitics.com. 3 April 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  13. "SNP MP reveals struggle to be understood in Parliament". Holyrood Magazine. 3 April 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  14. PoliticsHome.com (3 April 2017). "SNP MP reveals struggle to be understood in Parliament". PoliticsHome.com. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  15. "Kilmarnock and Loudoun re-elects Alan Brown as MP on night of shocks". 9 June 2017.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Cathy Jamieson		 Member of Parliament
for Kilmarnock and Loudoun
2015–present		 Incumbent
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