Graham Simpson: Who is Scotland's only Reform MSP?

Nigel Farage had an unexpected guest when he appeared at a hotel in West Lothian on Wednesday morning.

It was the Conservative MSP Graham Simpson, who has defected to Reform UK to become the party’s sole MSP at Holyrood.

He becomes the third Scottish Tory to leave Russell Findlay’s party since April, after Jamie Greene defected to the Lib Dems and Jeremy Balfour left to sit as an independent.

Simpson was first elected to Holyrood in 2016 via the regional list system, and he stated during Wednesday’s news conference that he would not be stepping down from the list following his defection.

He also said it had been a “wrench” to leave the party he joined at the age of 15.

Simpson becomes the second ever Reform UK MSP – following former Tory MSP Michelle Ballantyne’s defection in the last parliamentary session before Farage became party leader.

Before entering politics, Simpson spent over 25 years in journalism and worked for both The Scottish Sun and Daily Record newspapers.

He was born in Aberdeen but has lived in East Kilbride for over 20 years with his wife, where they brought up their two daughters.

Simpson moved away from the media and began his political career in local government – serving as a councillor for East Kilbride West from 2007 to 2017.

During that time, Simpson developed a strong focus on planning and housing policy, which he has continued to pursue at a national level.

He has been a vocal critic of what he describes as “inefficiencies and delays” in Scotland’s planning system and has called for reforms to accelerate housing delivery.

Upon his election to Holyrood, Simpson has emerged as a key figure within the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party and served as the party’s shadow minister for transport.

He has also sat on the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee and has been active in several cross-party groups, including those focused on housing, aviation and life sciences.

Simpson said on Wednesday he does not expect to be made Reform UK leader in Scotland simply because he defected.

He told assembled journalists in Broxburn: “I’m not coming here today as somebody who’s been parachuted in to be the Reform leader, that would be entirely wrong, it would be wrong for the members of Reform.

“I’m just here as I am, as an MSP.”

Simpson also said he will be tasked with the creation of a “policy suite” that goes beyond Reform’s current offering.