Jackson Carlaw CBE (born 12 April 1959) is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from February to July 2020, after acting in the role since 2018. He was previously the Deputy Leader of the party from 2011 to 2019. Carlaw has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 2007, initially for the West Scotland region, and later for Eastwood from 2016.
Born and raised in Newton Mearns, Carlaw worked in the motor retail industry before entering politics. He was first elected to the Scottish Parliament in 2007 and became Deputy Leader of the Scottish Conservatives in 2011. Carlaw held various positions including Scottish Conservative Spokesperson for Health and Sport, and Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Europe and Culture. He acted as leader during Ruth Davidson’s maternity leave in 2018-2019 and after Davidson’s resignation in 2019. Carlaw won the 2020 leadership election but resigned in July 2020.
