Former First Minister Alex Salmond dies aged 69

Former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has died after becoming ill while attending an international conference in North Macedonia.

Local media in North Macedonia reported that he collapsed during a lunch at the Inex Olgica Hotel on Saturday (October 12) and was pronounced dead at the scene.

It is believed that he died of a heart attack but an official cause of death has not yet been released.

Since Salmond’s death, tributes from across the political spectrum have been pouring in, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer describing him as a “monumental figure of Scottish and UK politics”.

King Charles said he and the Queen were “greatly saddened” to hear of Salmond’s death. In a statement, they continued: “His devotion to Scotland drove his decades of public service. We extend our deep condolences to his family and loved ones at this time”.

The current First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, said he was also “deeply shocked and saddened” to hear the news, adding: “Alex worked tirelessly and fought fearlessly for the country that he loved and for her Independence.

Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who succeeded Salmond, said that he had been her mentor and that they “formed one of the most successful partnerships” during their time in UK politics.

Salmond was the leader of the Scottish National Party from 1990 to 2000 and again from 2004 to 2014.

He was known as Scotland’s first pro-independence first minister, leading Scotland to the 2014 referendum on Scotland remaining part of the UK.

When Scottish voters used their ballots to express their desire to remain in the UK, by 55% to 45%, Salmond resigned.

Under Salmond’s leadership, the government in Scotland introduced free NHS prescriptions and free university tuition fees for Scottish students, which remain in place today and are extremely popular among the voters.

After quitting as First Minister, Salmond was accused of harassment and sexual offences and subsequently charged with 13 offences, including attempted rape. He was acquitted of all of the charges against him after two weeks on trial in 2020.

During the trial, Salmond said the accusations were “deliberate fabrications for a political purpose”.

Salmond quit the SNP in 2021 and formed an alternative pro-independence party called The Alba Party, of which he was the leader.

Recently, Salmond blamed the SNP’s poor performance in the 2024 General Election on the party’s “obsession” with “divisive” self-identification for trans people.

Speaking to BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, Salmond said: ”Both Hamza [Yousaf] and John Swinney have been handed a poison legacy. The chaos and incompetence dates back three or four years.

“The obsession with issues which are both divisive and not central to Scottish opinion, like self-identification – I mean, that took two years, consuming the parliament’s time and dividing the country.”

In December 2022, Scotland passed the Gender Recognition Reform bill by 86 votes to 39. The bill was set to make it easier for trans Scots to change the gender markers on their official documents, as well as open up the legal transition process to 16 and 17-year-olds for the first time, but it was blocked by the UK government in Westminster.

Currently, any trans people in the UK must apply to the gender recognition panel and present reports and a diagnosis of gender dysphoria – a process which can take years.