Lord Wallace of Tankerness, the former deputy first minister of Scotland and longstanding Liberal Democrat figure, has died aged 71 following complications after surgery. A mild-mannered and pragmatic politician, he was widely respected across the political spectrum for his collegiate approach and deep Christian faith.
Wallace played a key role in the merger of the Liberal Party with the SDP to form the Liberal Democrats in 1988, serving as Liberal chief whip at Westminster. Tavish Scott, a later leader of the Scottish Lib Dems, credited Wallace's diplomacy and patience for making the fraught negotiations succeed.
He was the only Liberal Democrat to serve in both coalition governments the party participated in: as Scotland's deputy first minister from 1999 to 2005 under Labour, and as advocate general for Scotland from 2010 to 2015 under David Cameron and Nick Clegg. He also served as acting first minister after the deaths of Donald Dewar and Henry McLeish.
As an MSP and later MP for Orkney and Shetland, Wallace championed local issues, including reforms after the Orkney child abuse scandal in 1991 and the Braer oil spill in Shetland in 1993. He was a lifelong advocate of Scottish devolution within the UK.
Born in Annan, Dumfriesshire, Wallace studied law at Cambridge and Edinburgh, and was called to the Scottish bar in 1979. He succeeded Jo Grimond as MP for Orkney and Shetland in 1983, holding the seat until 2001. He leaves behind his wife, Rosie, and two daughters.
