Kenny MacAskill

Who is Kenny MacAskill?

Kenneth "Kenny" Wright MacAskill is the Scottish Government's Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Scottish National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament for Edinburgh Eastern, formerly Edinburgh East and Musselburgh since 2007. He was previously a regional MSP for Lothian since 1999, and had been Shadow Justice and Home Affairs Minister.

Born in Edinburgh, MacAskill was educated at Linlithgow Academy and Edinburgh University, and was a senior partner in a law firm. He was a long standing member of the SNP's National Executive Committee and has been National Treasurer and Vice Convener of Policy. In 2004 Kenny wrote a book entitled Building a Nation - Post Devolution Nationalism in Scotland. He has since edited another book Agenda for a New Scotland - Visions of Scotland 2020 and has co-authored two books on the Scottish Diaspora, Global Scots - Voices From Afar and Wherever the Saltire Flies, with the former First Minister Henry McLeish.