James Douglas Hepburn (born 21 May 1979) is a Scottish politician who has served as
Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training since 2021. A member of the
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...
(SNP), he has been
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
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth since
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
, having previously represented the
Central Scotland region from
2007 to 2011.
Hepburn has served in numerous roles within the
Scottish Government, first as
Minister for Sport, Health Improvement and Mental Health
The Minister for Mental Wellbeing and Social Care is a member of the Scottish Government. The Minister reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, who has overall responsibility for the portfolio, and is a member of cabinet. As a ...
from 2014 to 2016, then as
Minister for Employability and Training
The Minister for Employability and Training was a member of the Scottish Government. The Minister reported to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills and the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work, who split overall responsibil ...
from 2016 to 2018, and
from 2018 to 2021.
Early life
Born 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 ...
, Hepburn was educated at
Hyndland Secondary School
Hyndland Secondary School is a non-denominational state comprehensive school in the Hyndland area of Glasgow, Scotland.
The school provides secondary education for children from the local area, although there are many children from other areas ...
and graduated from the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
with a Politics and History degree. Whilst a student, Hepburn ran the unsuccessful campaign for
Alasdair Gray
Alasdair James Gray (28 December 1934 – 29 December 2019) was a Scottish writer and artist. His first novel, ''Lanark'' (1981), is seen as a landmark of Scottish fiction. He published novels, short stories, plays, poetry and translations, and ...
to become the
Rector of the University of Glasgow
The (Lord) Rector of the University of Glasgow is one of the most senior posts within the institution, elected every three years by students. The theoretical role of the rector is to represent students to the senior management of the university ...
and was the Senior Vice-President at the
Glasgow University Students' Representative Council
The Glasgow University Students' Representative Council, also known simply as the Students' Representative Council or by the acronyms GUSRC and SRC is a student union at the University of Glasgow. Unlike at other universities in the United Kin ...
, a post once held by his SNP Parliamentary colleague
Alasdair Allan.
Career
Before his election, Hepburn was convener of the
Federation of Student Nationalists
SNP Students (also known as the Federation of Student Nationalists) is the student wing of the Scottish National Party (SNP), representing students in Scottish higher education. It was formed in 1961 when various student organisations supportiv ...
and the Young Scots for Independence. He had been the SNP candidate for the
Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East constituency at the
2005 general election. He has worked for
Alex Neil, a fellow SNP MSP.
Hepburn was elected during the
2007 election for the Central Scotland region, having also contested the
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth seat at that election, finishing second behind
Cathie Craigie
Cathie Craigie (born 14 April 1954) is a former Scottish Labour politician who served as Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Cumbernauld and Kilsyth constituency from 1999 to 2011.
Early life and career
Craigie was born in Sti ...
. In this election he was one of only two candidates to win more than 40% in the constituency contested and not win the seat, the other being
Alasdair Morrison in the
Western Isles
The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coas ...
. He was the second youngest elected member of the Scottish Parliament for the 2007–2011 session after his SNP colleague
Aileen Campbell
Aileen Elizabeth Campbell (born 18 May 1980) is a Scottish football administrator and former politician who has served as the chief executive of Scottish Women's Football since 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party, she was a Member of ...
.
Hepburn was a member of the Scottish Parliament Rural Affairs and Environment Committee and a substitute member of the Equal Opportunities Committee until 26 June 2008 when he became a member of the European and External Relations Committee, and a substitute to the Rural Affairs and Environment Committee, before being switched to a substitute member of the Public Petitions Committee. He subsequently was moved to the Public Audit and Equal Opportunities Committees towards the latter part of the third session of the Scottish Parliament. He is now the Deputy Convener of the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Committee. Hepburn also served as the convener of the Cross Party Group on Human Rights and Civil Liberties in the Scottish Parliament's third session.
He was placed third on the SNP list for Central Scotland for the
2011 Scottish Parliament election
The 2011 Scottish Parliament election was held on Thursday, 5 May 2011 to Members of the 4th Scottish Parliament, elect 129 members to the Scottish Parliament.
The election delivered the first majority government since the opening of Holyrood, ...
but was returned for the
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth constituency. On 21 November 2014, it was announced that he would be Minister for Sport and Health Improvement. On 18 May he was moved to the post of Minister for Employability and Training.
It was Hepburn's written question which revealed that projects in Scotland funded by the
Private Finance Initiative
The private finance initiative (PFI) was a United Kingdom government procurement policy aimed at creating "public–private partnerships" (PPPs) where private firms are contracted to complete and manage public projects. Initially launched in 199 ...
will cost the taxpayer some £22.3 billion over a 40-year period.
He was one of six SNP MSPs to attend the "Big Blockade" event at the
Faslane naval base
His Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde (HMNB Clyde; also HMS ''Neptune''), primarily sited at Faslane on the Gare Loch, is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Devonport and HMNB Portsmouth). It ...
organised by
Faslane 365
Faslane Peace Camp is a permanent peace camp sited alongside Faslane Naval base in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It has been occupied continuously, in a few different locations, since 12 June 1982. In 1984, the book ''Faslane:Diary of a Peace Camp ...
on 1 October 2007 and has been active in calling for greater transparency about allegations that American government agencies facilitated
extraordinary rendition
Extraordinary rendition is a euphemism for state-sponsored Kidnapping, forcible abduction in another jurisdiction and transfer to a third state. The phrase usually refers to a United States-led program used during the War on Terror, which had t ...
flights through Scottish airports. He has also called for any Scottish airport that is being sold by
BAA Limited
BAA or Baa may refer to:
Letters and sounds
* Baa, onomatopoeic representation of the noise made by sheep
*Bāʾ, the Arabic letter ب
* Baa, the fifth consonant of the Thaana script used in the Dhivehi language
Places
* Baa Atoll, an administrat ...
to be brought under public control.
Hepburn has signed up to the
People's Charter, a campaigning document prepared by trade unionists as an alternative to
neoliberalism
Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
and has drawn criticism from some elements of the Scottish media for having tabled a motion on
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
.
Personal life
Hepburn's wife Julie was the SNP candidate for
Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East at the
2010 UK general election
The 2010 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 6 May 2010, with 45,597,461 registered voters entitled to vote to elect members to the House of Commons. The election took place in 650 constituencies across the United Kingdom unde ...
, she finished in second place to Labour with 9,794 votes. He is a supporter of
Partick Thistle Football Club and lives in
Cumbernauld
Cumbernauld (; gd, Comar nan Allt, meeting of the streams) is a large town in the historic county of Dunbartonshire and council area of North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is the tenth most-populous locality in Scotland and the most populated t ...
.
References
External links
*
Parliamentary website2011 Campaign website
Cumbernauldnl.info interview Jamie Hepburn MSP
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hepburn, Jamie
1979 births
Living people
Politicians from Glasgow
People educated at Hyndland Secondary School
Alumni of the University of Glasgow
Scottish National Party MSPs
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2007–2011
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2011–2016
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2016–2021
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2021–2026
Ministers of the Scottish Government
Scottish National Party parliamentary candidates
People associated with North Lanarkshire