THE Scottish Tories have a new MSP.
James Adams was sworn into the Holyrood chamber for the Conservatives on Thursday, replacing Douglas Lumsden, who is now the MP for Aberdeen South .
Why isn’t there a by-election to replace Douglas Lumsden?
Lumsden was elected to Westminster in the by-election in Aberdeen South on June 18, which was held to replace now-Economy Secretary Stephen Flynn .
A new law banning “double jobbing” means that politicians cannot sit as both an MP at Westminster and an MSP at Holyrood at the same time.
As such, the Scottish Tory had to resign from the Scottish Parliament when he won the by-election.
However, there will not be a second by-election to fill the seat Lumsden vacated in the Scottish Parliament because he was a list MSP, and not a constituency one.
As a result, Adams – who was fourth of the Tories’ North East regional list – will automatically take Lumsden’s place.
Alexander Burnett would have taken the slot as he was third on the Conservatives’ North East list. However, Burnett was elected as the constituency MSP for Aberdeenshire West .
Who is James Adams, the Scottish Tories’ newest MSP?
Adams is currently an Aberdeenshire councillor for Fraserburgh and District. The law banning “double jobbing” does not extend to councillors, so he will not be compelled to resign from the local authority. It is unclear if he plans to do so.
Adams ran in the Banffshire and Buchan Coast constituency for the Scottish Tories in the 2026 Scottish parliament elections, coming in third behind the SNP and Reform UK.
Ahead of the Holyrood vote, Adams told Grampian Online that he worked in the NHS.
The new MSP is also the director of the football team Fraserburgh FC, which plays in the Highland League.
He describes himself as an “Apple geek and Star Wars fanatic”, and has two daughters.
Not as noticed but just as important, because of the win last week @ScotTories have a new MSP…and I’ve never been prouder. One of my oldest mates, a real top bloke and a passionate son of the ‘Broch, @James_A_Adams will make a brilliant MSP for the North East. Well done mate 💪 pic.twitter.com/rLOdMgeClb
— Andrew Bowie MP (@AndrewBowie_MP) June 23, 2026
Andrew Bowie, the Tories’ shadow Scottish secretary, has said that Adams is one of his “oldest mates”. On social media, Bowie shared images of the two of them going back years.
Adams responded: “Means more than you could possibly know.
“Who would think that twa loons fae the Broch and Inverurie would end up as members of their respective parliaments. Nae bad ata!”
Adams joining the Scottish parliament means that 65 of the 129 MSPs at Holyrood – a majority of one – are new to the role.
