Scotland’s first SNP First Minister Alex Salmond has died suddenly at the age of 69, leaving behind his wife Moira McGlashan, who stood by her husband throughout his prominent career
Alex Salmond is survived by his widow Moira McGlashan, who was married to the politician for more than forty years.
Scotland’s first SNP first minister died suddenly at the age of 69, shocking the world of politics, where he was a senior figure for decades. Mr Salmond died on Saturday afternoon shortly after giving a speech at the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy Forum in the North Macedonia lake resort town of Ohrid.
The politician became First Minister of Scotland from 2007 to 2014 and was leader of the SNP on two occasions, from 1990 to 2000 and from 2004 to 2014. When he was at the most powerful stage of his career, Moira spent seven years at the top as Scotland’s ‘First Wife.
However Ms Salmond, aged 87, has managed to stay clear of the spotlight, rarely making public appearances alongside her husband. The couple were married for 43 years but had no children.
When he joined the Scottish Office in the 1970s, Moira, 17 years his senior, became his boss. They met in the 1970s when she was working in London as a civil servant.
As a then 24-year-old, Mr Salmond had joined her team as an assistant economist in the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland in London. Not much has been said about how their love story blossomed, but the pair went on to tie the knot in 1981. During her time as ‘First Wife’, she didn’t do any press interviews or speeches.
However, one glimpse into their lives as a married couple was in a 1990 chat she had with the Sunday Post. She revealed that they spent their time away from their top government jobs playing board games together.
They enjoyed playing cards and Scrabble, and she would ‘invariably win’. “I married Alex, not politics. That’s his life, and I am happy to be in the background,” she declared. “I share his convictions, but one politician in the family is quite enough.”
She joined her husband on state visits, to the US in 2008 and on trips to the United Arab Emirates in 2011 and again in 2021. In 2012, Moira was pictured seated alongside Alex in the stands at Wimbledon.
The loving wife stood by her husband during a testing time of their marriage when he was accused of a string of sexual offences in the years that followed his term as First Minister. While she didn’t publicly comment on the allegations, she accompanied him to Edinburgh’s High Court in 2020.
Mr Salmond was accused of 13 offences against nine women, including attempted rape and a series of sexual assaults. He was cleared of all charges by a jury following the 11-day trial.
Working away in the background, Moira was known to attend SNP events and fundraisers near the couple’s home in Aberdeenshire and supported Mr Salmond by attending private dinners with business leaders. In a 2007 interview, he confessed her influence on him was “very substantial.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer led tributes to the ex-SNP leader and media personality, saying he “cared deeply about Scotland’s heritage, history and culture.” The King has said he and the Queen are “greatly saddened to hear of the sudden death of Alex Salmond”, adding: “His devotion to Scotland drove his decades of public service.”
Mr Salmond had made a speech at the crowded event in Macedonia, and the party said it understood he suffered a heart attack, although there will be a post-mortem examination to confirm the cause of death.
