A former minister in Tony Blair’s government is seeking to make a comeback at Westminster, almost a decade after losing his seat. Douglas Alexander was in both Blair’s cabinet and that of his successor Gordon Brown.
But as the SNP virtually swept the board in the 2015 general election, winning all but three of the Scottish seats at Westminster, Alexander lost his his Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat to Mhairi Black – then a 20-year-old student.
He is now seeking to make a return to elected politics, standing as Labour’s candidate for East Lothian in the next general election. The seat is currently held by former Scottish justice justice secretary Kenny MacAskill, who left the SNP to join Alex Salmond’s Alba Party.
