Elizabeth Jane Smith (born 27 February 1960) is a Scottish politician who 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 Mid Scotland and Fife since 2007. A member of the

Scottish Conservative Party 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 ...

, she has served as Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy since 2021. Before entering parliament, Smith was a schoolteacher and political researcher, as well as an amateur sportswoman, representing the Scottish women's cricket team. She was first elected in 2007 and re-elected in 2011 and

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 trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, having earlier stood unsuccessfully for the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

at the 2001 general election in the

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

constituency, where she missed out to the SNP by just 48 votes. She stood as a constituency candidate in the

Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, commonly referred to as the Education Secretary, is a position in the Scottish Government Cabinet responsible for all levels of education in Scotland. The Cabinet Secretary is supported by the Min ...

from 2016 to 2020 and as Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform from 2020 to 2021.

Early life and sporting career

Smith was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, and attended

George Watson's College George Watson's College is a co-educational Independent school (United Kingdom), independent day school in Scotland, situated on Colinton Road, in the Merchiston area of Edinburgh. It was first established as a Scottish education in the eight ...

before going on to the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

to study politics and economics and gain a Diploma in Education. After graduating, she returned to George Watson's College as a member of the staff, where she taught economics and

modern studies Modern Studies is a subject in the Scottish school system, currently taught at National 3 through Advanced Higher. It concerns contemporary social and political issues, and political processes, in Scottish, UK and international contexts. The ...

. Smith left the teaching profession in 1997 to work as an advisor to Sir

Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament from 2 ...

. Between 2001 and 2003, she worked at the Scottish Conservatives' central office, as head of the office of the chairman.Home ► MSPs ► Current MSPs ► Liz Smith ► Personal Information
– The Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 19 October 2015. A keen sportswoman, Smith played club cricket for many years, but was not given an opportunity to play at a higher level until 2000, when the Scottish national side was reassembled for the first time since 1979. Her first match for the national team came against

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

, an English county team, but she neither batted nor bowled as her team cruised to a ten-wicket victory. In 2001, Smith was selected in the Scottish squad for the 2001 European Championship, where matches held

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

(ODI) status. On her international debut against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, she was 41 years and 164 days old, making her the fourth-oldest ODI debutant on record, and the oldest to debut since 1978. Smith made nine-ball

duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form t ...

s against both England and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, and against the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Smith remains the oldest Scottish player, male or female, to appear in a full ODI. She has remained involved in promoting the sport since retiring, and in April 2014, following a reconstitution of the organisation, was elected the inaugural president of the Scottish Women's Cricket Association (SWCA), aligned with

Cricket Scotland Cricket Scotland, formerly known as the Scottish Cricket Union, is the Sport governing body, governing body of the sport of cricket in Scotland. The body is based at the National Cricket Academy, Edinburgh. The SCU was formed in 1908, but unde ...

. Outside of cricket, Smith has an interest in mountaineering and

hillwalking Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultiv ...

, having taken part in expeditions to the Alps and the Himalayas. After climbing

Slioch , photo = Slioch_from_Loch_Maree.jpg , photo_caption = Slioch seen from the shores of Loch Maree. , elevation_m = 981 , elevation_ref = , prominence_m = 626 , prominence_ref = , parent_peak = Sgurr Mor , listing = Munro, Marilyn , tr ...

in July 2012, she completed the feat of "bagging the

Munro A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...

s" (climbing every mountain in Scotland over a set height). She had begun the task in 1982, with a climb of

Ben Nevis Ben Nevis ( ; gd, Beinn Nibheis ) is the highest mountain in 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 ...

, and after entering parliament used her climbs to raise funds for charity.

Parliament

Smith was narrowly beaten (by just 48 votes) to the

seat at the 2001 General Election by the SNP's Annabelle Ewing. She made '' The Herald''

Scottish Politician of the Year Scottish Politician of the Year is an annual award established in 1999. It is held by '' The Herald'' newspaper in Prestonfield House, Edinburgh. Although the awards ceremony has been held once at the Royal Museum, Prestonfield House Hotel is c ...

shortlist for 'The One to Watch' in 2007. Smith acted as campaign manager for

Murdo Fraser Murdo MacKenzie Fraser (born 5 September 1965) is a Scottish politician who served as Deputy Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2005 to 2011. He has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Mid Scotland and Fife reg ...

in his leadership election campaign in 2011. She was first elected 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 ...

for the Mid Scotland and Fife electoral region in 2007 and re-elected in 2011 and

, having earlier stood unsuccessfully for the

at the 2001 UK general election in the

constituency, where she missed out to the SNP by just 48 votes. She stood as a constituency candidate in the

constituency at the Scottish Parliament in 2007 and again in the newly established Perthshire South and Kinross-shire constituency in both 2011 and 2016, missing out by 1,422 votes in 2016. Smith is shadow cabinet secretary for education and skills. She sits on the Education and Skills Committee of the Scottish Parliament. She is also the chair of the Parliament's Cross Party Group on Colleges and Universities and co-chairs the Cross Party Group on Sport.

Controversy

Smith was criticised in 2018 by Holyrood's standards committee for forwarding a confidential dossier on allegations of bullying at George Watson's College to the school. Smith, who was a governor of the school at the time, forwarded an e-mail about bullying allegations to the chairman of the board of governors at the school and to its principal. The documents detailed specific allegations about the treatment of their child. Parents claimed Smith had disclosed information to others to which she had privileged access as an MSP.

References

External links

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Scottish Conservatives PageThey Work For You
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Liz 1960 births Living people Alumni of the University of Edinburgh People educated at George Watson's College Conservative MSPs Female members of the Scottish Parliament Members of the Scottish Parliament 2007–2011 Members of the Scottish Parliament 2011–2016 Members of the Scottish Parliament 2016–2021 Politicians from Edinburgh Scotland women One Day International cricketers Scottish cricket administrators Scottish mountain climbers Scottish women cricketers Staff of George Watson's College Scottish Conservative Party parliamentary candidates Members of the Scottish Parliament 2021–2026