Michael Matheson MSP |
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Cabinet Secretary for Justice | |
Assumed office 21 November 2014 |
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First Minister | Nicola Sturgeon |
Preceded by | Kenny MacAskill |
Minister for Public Health | |
In office 20 May 2011 – 21 November 2014 |
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First Minister | Alex Salmond |
Preceded by | Shona Robison |
Succeeded by | Maureen Watt |
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Falkirk West |
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Assumed office 3 May 2007 |
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Preceded by | Dennis Canavan |
Majority | 11,280 (35.1%) |
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Central Scotland |
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In office 6 May 1999 – 3 May 2007 |
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Personal details | |
Born |
Glasgow, Scotland |
8 September 1970
Political party | Scottish National Party |
Children | 3 |
Alma mater |
Queen Margaret University Open University |
Profession | Occupational therapist |
Religion | Roman Catholic |
Michael Stephen Matheson (born 8 September 1970) is a Scottish politician who has been the Cabinet Secretary for Justice since 2014. He has been a Scottish National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament since 1999, first representing Central Scotland and, since 2007, the Falkirk West constituency.
Matheson was born in Glasgow, was raised in the Toryglen district and was educated at St John Bosco Secondary School in the city. He then attended Queen Margaret College, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in occupational therapy in 1991. He later went on to graduate from the Open University with both a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Postgraduate diploma in applied social sciences.
Following graduation, he worked as a community occupational therapist for eight years, until his election to the Scottish Parliament. During that time he worked for Highland Regional Council, Central Regional Council and Stirling Council.
Matheson first stood as a parliamentary candidate for the SNP in the 1997 general election, standing for the newly created Hamilton North and Bellshill constituency.