Tributes paid following the death of ex-Stirling politician and Holyrood Presiding Officer

Daily Record

3 days ago

With proud links to both Clackmannanshire and Stirlingshire, he rose from his family's humble beginnings to earn top honours for a lifetime of public service.
Tributes are being paid to the Rt Hon Sir George Reid following his death in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
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The 86-year-old, who lived in Bridge of Allan, was SNP MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire from 1974 to 1979 and MSP for Ochil from 2003 to 2007.
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He was also a former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, an Electoral Commissioner and Trustee of the Edinburgh Tattoo and Glasgow Life, and chaired strategic reviews of public bodies in the UK and Europe.
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Throughout his life he received many high honours – Lord High Commissioner, Lord-Lieutenant, Knight bachelor - and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at Holyrood in 2018, decided on unanimously by senior officials from the Scottish Government, Scotland Office, Scottish Parliament, office of the Auditor General and the Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations.
His father had been born into a desperately poor family and worked his way up from office boy to managing director of an Alloa brewery.
Sir George graduated with first-class honours from St Andrews University and later studied international affairs, humanitarian law and conflict resolution in the United States of America, Switzerland and Sweden, and held five honorary doctorates.
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For 12 years between his time at Westminster and Holyrood he worked worldwide in wars and disasters as a director of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent in Geneva.
Sir George served as Deputy Presiding Officer from 1999 to 2003, and then as Presiding Officer from 2003 to 2007. He was elected as MSP for the Mid Scotland and Fife region from 1999 to 2003 and then for the Ochil constituency from 2003 to 2007. During his time as Presiding Officer, he oversaw the completion of the new Scottish Parliament building, opening in 2004. He was also MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire from 1974 to 1979.
The Scottish Parliament's Presiding Officer, Rt Hon Alison Johnstone MSP, was among those who paid tribute.
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She said: 'On behalf of all at the Scottish Parliament, I express our deepest sadness at the death of our second Presiding Officer, The Rt Hon Sir George Reid. He'll be remembered not only for bringing the Holyrood construction project to completion, but for building confidence and ambition in our young Parliament.
'A proud son of Clackmannanshire and an internationalist by outlook, he was determined to put Holyrood on the map at home and abroad, and very much succeeded. By the time he left office, Holyrood was established at the centre of public life in Scotland and over a million people had visited to see for themselves the new Parliament in action.
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'The story of devolution and the early years of our Parliament will remember George fondly and with gratitude.
'My deepest condolences to Daphne, his daughter and grandchildren and his many friends and colleagues. Sir George was welcoming and supportive to me, in Holyrood and outwith. He will be very much missed.
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'Flags at Holyrood have been lowered as a mark of respect.'
A book of condolence was expected to open at Holyrood and online.
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On being appointed a Knight of the Thistle - the highest honour in Scotland - in 2022, Sir George said: 'It's a substantial honour for a Tullibody boy. I hope people will still call me George.
'I'm 83 now and intend to keep teaching postgraduates at the University of Stirling. That and seeing the family is my main focus.'
Sir George was knighted in 2012 for services to Scottish politics and public life.
He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Professorial Teaching Fellow at the University of Stirling.
In 2008 Sir George was appointed Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and then served as Lord Lieutenant of Clackmannanshire from 2011 to 2014.