SCOTTISH parliamentarian Christina McKelvie has died at the age of 57, her partner and SNP deputy leader Keith Brown announced today.

Ms McKelvie served in Holyrood since 2007 on the central Scotland list and, since 2011, as constituency MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse.

Mr Brown said she “lit up every room she was in with her positivity and bright smile,” adding: “She was always proud of her working-class roots in Easterhouse and often said she could not have dreamt of becoming a government minister.

“We are immensely proud of all Christina achieved.”

Ms McKelvie had undergone breast cancer treatment which ended successfully in 2021, but was forced to take medical leave from her job as alcohol and drugs minister last year to undergo further treatment.

First Minister John Swinney said: “She served her constituents, her party and her country with the greatest amount of devotion that was imaginable.

“I express to her partner — my deputy, one of my dearest friends — and to her sons Jack and Lewis, my profound sympathy at their loss and my gratitude for the benefit of having known such a magnificent woman.”