Who is Russell Findlay, the former journalist running to replace Douglas Ross as Scottish Conservative leader

Touted as an early favourite to replace incumbent leader Douglas Ross, Mr Findlay says the party can “change Scotland for the better” under his leadership, and stand up for “aspirational conservatism”. 

He promises the Conservatives can become the party of government in Scotland if they can reconnect with their traditional values and focus on meeting the aspirations of ordinary people.

Mr Findlay is the bookies’ early favourite to win, and has already secured the backing of MSPs Rachael Hamilton, Miles Briggs and Douglas Lumsden.

So what has Mr Findlay said about the leadership contest, and what do we know about the man who could become the leader of the second biggest political party in Scotland?

Who is Russell Findlay?

The 51-year-old became a regional MSP for West Scotland at the 2021 Holyrood election.

Despite only being a politician for three years, he has risen through the ranks and is now the party’s justice spokesman. He has been particularly vocal on issues such as the Hate Crime Act and where transgender prisoners are housed.

Before being elected as an MSP, he was a journalist for 30 years, focusing on organised crime and drug wars.

He worked at STV, The Scottish Sun and The Sunday Mail, and an investigation he carried out into the disappearance of Margaret Fleming was used as evidence to help prosecute her killers.

In 2015 he was targeted in an acid attack at his home in Glasgow due to his work exposing the dealings of criminal gangs in the city. He was able to hold off attacker William Burns, who was disguised as a postal worker, for long enough for the police to arrive and the hitman was subsequently detained and jailed.

In 2020 he became the Scottish Conservatives’ director of communications and was elected a year later.

What has he said about standing?

Mr Findlay wrote in The Scottish Daily Mail setting out his intention to stand for leadership and explaining what the party under him could look like.

He said: “There is a common sense coalition that we can build to meet the aspirations of ordinary people. I’m standing as a candidate for the leadership of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party because I believe we have the chance to change Scotland for the better.”

Mr Findlay said the party could stand up for workers if it goes back to its traditional values, adding: “It’s a conservatism which is pro-worker too - it understands backing business isn’t about maximising the profits of shareholders, it’s about generating the stable, well-paid jobs needed so that everyone can benefit from economic growth.

“I believe there is a wide, and as-yet untapped, support in Scotland for a conservatism that is unashamedly aspirational in its character and for encouraging a society which respects and rewards individual effort and initiative.

“We know there are many people out there in Scotland who think conservative, but don’t currently vote Conservative. There are many people who don’t feel we, or any other party, properly represents them.”

Mr Findlay is likely to have a number of running mates, despite being the bookies’ favourite.

Ever since Mr Ross announced his resignation, his name was being pushed forward by insiders within the party as a successor, so it is hardly surprising Mr Findlay has now officially announced his intention to stand.

Mr Findlay said: “Since the general election, we have heard a range of views about our party’s future direction and I’ve been hugely encouraged to receive support from many credible people. I’ve explained what I think needs to be done and feel that it’s time to step up and declare my intention to stand. I look forward to what must be a positive, fair and open contest.”

In setting out his pitch, he said the party had “not been conservative enough” in recent years. “We’ve not grounded our policies in the principles and values that we’re passionate about,” he said.

“We’ve not been proudly conservative. We haven’t given people a positive conservative vision to believe in.

“The fact is that over recent years the Scottish Conservative Party has been philosophically adrift, defined by our opposition to a dominant and divisive SNP, not by our own vision for Scotland.

“This has been bad not just for our party, but also for the country since it has deprived voters of a meaningful choice in ideas. So under my leadership that core purpose will be renewed. We will reconnect with our traditional values of enterprise, self-reliance, fiscal responsibility and the rule of law. We will take those values and build a fresh and dynamic policy offer for the people of Scotland.”

Why is there a leadership race?

Douglas Ross has been the party leader since 2020, and was the MP for Moray from 2017 until 2024 and has been an MSP for the Highlands and Islands region since 2021.

During the general election campaign, he held an emergency press conference where he announced he was placing David Duguid at the 11th hour as the candidate for the Aberdeenshire North and Moray East seat.

Mr Duguid is receiving hospital treatment for a spinal injury and posted on social media that he was unhappy with this decision. This caused a massive backlash within the party at Mr Ross’s decision and during the campaign he made the unprecedented decision to resign as party leader.

At the general election, Mr Ross lost his bid for re-election after receiving 12,513 votes to the SNP’s Seamus Logan’s 13,455. The Reform candidate Jo Hart received 5,562 votes.