William Mackie Aitken (born 15 April 1947) is a

Scottish Conservative The Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party ( gd, Pàrtaidh Tòraidheach na h-Alba, sco, Scots Tory an Unionist Pairty), often known simply as the Scottish Conservatives and colloquially as the Scottish Tories, is a centre-right political par ...

politician. He was a

Member of the Scottish Parliament Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP; gd, Ball Pàrlamaid na h-Alba, BPA; sco, Memmer o the Scots Pairliament, MSP) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament. Electoral system The ad ...

(MSP) for

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

from 1999 to 2011, Scottish Conservative Spokesperson for Justice, and Convener of the Justice Committee from 2007 to 2011.

Background, education and career

Aitken was born in

, and educated at

Allan Glen's School Allan Glen's School was, for most of its existence, a local authority, selective secondary school for boys in Glasgow, Scotland, charging nominal fees for tuition. It was founded by the Allan Glen's Endowment Scholarship Trust on the death, i ...

in the city and Glasgow College of Technology (now

Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow Caledonian University ( gd, Oilthigh Chailleannach Ghlaschu, ), informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley, is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queen's College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and G ...

). He worked in the Financial Services/Insurance Industry for 34 years (1965–1999). He is a supporter of

Partick Thistle Football Club Partick Thistle Football Club are a professional association football, football club from Glasgow, Scotland. Despite their name, the club are based at Firhill Stadium in the Maryhill area of the city, and have not played in Partick since 1908. ...

. His interests include sports, reading and foreign travel. Following involvement in youth politics he was elected a Glasgow City Councillor in 1977 for the Anniesland ward, subsequently becoming the Convener of the Licensing Committee and Vice Convener of the Personnel Committee. He served as Leader of the Opposition for two terms prior to becoming MSP for Glasgow in 1999. He was a District Court Judge (1985–2000), and is also a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and a Deputy Lord Lieutenant of the

City of Glasgow Glasgow City Council is the local government authority for the City of Glasgow, Scotland. It was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, largely with the boundaries of the post-1975 City of Glasgow district of the S ...

(1993–present). Following his election to the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyro ...

, he became Conservative Party Spokesman on Housing and Justice prior to becoming

Chief Whip The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes. United Kingdom ...

in 2003. He then became Scottish Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Justice and also the Convener of the Parliament's Justice Committee. He was a trustee of the Scottish Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund. On 19 May 2010, it was announced that he would step down at the next Holyrood election, to be held on 5 May 2011. In February 2011 he caused controversy when he suggested that a woman who was recently

gang rape Gang rape, also called serial gang rape, group rape, or multiple perpetrator rape in scholarly literature,Ullman, S. E. (2013). 11 Multiple perpetrator rape victimization. Handbook on the Study of Multiple Perpetrator Rape: A Multidisciplinary Re ...

d in Glasgow may have been a prostitute, as the victim claimed that she was dragged from one side of the city centre to another, a location known for prostitution. On 21 February 2011 he resigned as Convenor of the Scottish Parliament justice committee in response to this controversy.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aitken, Bill 1947 births Living people Politicians from Glasgow People educated at Allan Glen's School Scottish Conservative Party councillors Councillors in Glasgow Conservative MSPs Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003 Members of the Scottish Parliament 2003–2007 Members of the Scottish Parliament 2007–2011