Christian Allard (born 31 March 1964) is a French-born British politician. Allard was elected as a
Scottish National Party (SNP)
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
(MEP) for
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
constituency in the
2019 European Parliament election
The 2019 European Parliament election was held between 23 and 26 May 2019, the ninth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979. A total of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) represent more than 512 million peop ...
, serving until the 31 January 2020 when the
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC ...
process was completed.
He is also a former
Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the
North East Scotland region 2013−2016 and has been a councillor for
Aberdeen City Council
gd, Comhairle Cathair Obar Dheathain
, native_name_lang =
, other_name =
, image_skyline = Town House, Municipal Offices and Court Houses in Aberdeen.jpg
, image_caption ...
since 2017.
Background
Allard was born in 1964 in
Dijon
Dijon (, , ) (dated)
* it, Digione
* la, Diviō or
* lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920.
The earlies ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. He first came to
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
around 1986, when he accepted the offer from a European seafood transport and logistics network (Tradimar/STEF) to open an office in
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 ...
.
After marrying a Scot, he later moved to the North East to work for a seafood exporting company. He worked in the fishing industry for over 30 years.
Political career
Allard joined the SNP around 2004.
His belief that
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
could and should be an independent country was shaped by his experiences in the fishing industry.
Allard worked part-time as a constituency assistant to
Dennis Robertson MSP, and was a key part of Mr Robertson’s successful 2011 campaign team in
Aberdeenshire West.
He succeeded
Mark McDonald after he resigned his list seat to contest the
2013 Aberdeen Donside by-election.
His swearing into the Scottish Parliament was conducted in both English and French, the first time that the latter language has been used for the purpose.
Allard stood for re-election in
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
and topped the SNP's regional list in the
North East region. The SNP's dominated the constituency seats in the North East, with the regional seats going to candidates from the lists of other parties.
Allard stood for election at the
2017 Aberdeen City Council election for the Torry/Ferryhill ward and took the 3rd seat with 910 1st preference votes.
Allard was elected as a
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
for the
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
constituency in the
2019 European Parliament election
The 2019 European Parliament election was held between 23 and 26 May 2019, the ninth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979. A total of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) represent more than 512 million peop ...
.
He served as MEP until the 31 January 2020, when the
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC ...
process was completed.
At the
2021 Scottish Parliament election
The 2021 Scottish Parliament election took place on 6 May 2021, under the provisions of the Scotland Act 1998. All 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament were elected in the sixth election since the parliament was re-established in 1999. The e ...
, he was the second list candidate for the SNP in the North East.
Personal life
Allard has raised three daughters in Scotland, and also now has four grandchildren.
See also
*
Alyn Smith
Alyn Edward Smith (born 15 September 1973) is a Scottish politician. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stirling at the 2019 general election. He also served as a Member of the E ...
*
Aileen McLeod
*
Heather Anderson
Heather Anderson (29 July 1994 – 13 November 2022) was an Australian Army soldier and Australian rules footballer who played for the Adelaide Football Club in the AFL Women's competition in 2017. She served as a medic in the 1st Close H ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allard, Christian
1964 births
Living people
Politicians from Dijon
French emigrants to the United Kingdom
Politicians from Aberdeen
Scottish National Party MSPs
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2011–2016
Scottish National Party MEPs
MEPs for Scotland 2019–2020
Councillors in Aberdeen
Scottish National Party councillors