Nicol Stephen

The Lord Stephen
Official portrait, 2003
Deputy First Minister of Scotland
In office
27 June 2005 – 17 May 2007
First MinisterJack McConnell
Preceded byJim Wallace
Succeeded byNicola Sturgeon
Ministerial offices
Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning
In office
27 June 2005 – 17 May 2007
First MinisterJack McConnell
Preceded byJim Wallace
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Minister for Transport and Telecommunications
In office
21 May 2003 – 27 June 2005
First MinisterJack McConnell
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byTavish Scott
Parliamentary offices
Member of the House of Lords
Life peerage
7 February 2011
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Aberdeen South
In office
6 May 1999 – 22 March 2011
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Member of Parliament
for Kincardine and Deeside
In office
7 November 1991 – 16 March 1992
Preceded byAlick Buchanan-Smith
Succeeded byGeorge Kynoch
Leader of Scottish Liberal Democrats
In office
23 June 2005 – 2 July 2008
DeputyMichael Moore
LeaderCharles Kennedy
Menzies Campbell
Vince Cable (Acting)
Nick Clegg
PresidentMalcolm Bruce
Preceded byJim Wallace
Succeeded byTavish Scott
Personal details
Born
Nicol Ross Stephen

(1960-03-23) 23 March 1960 (age 64)
Aberdeen, Scotland
Political partyScottish Liberal Democrats
SpouseCaris Doig (Lady Stephen)
Children4
Alma materUniversity of Aberdeen, University of Edinburgh

Nicol Ross Stephen, Baron Stephen (born 23 March 1960) is a Scottish politician who served as Deputy First Minister of Scotland and Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning from 2005 to 2007. A member of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, he was the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Aberdeen South from 1999 to 2011, and was leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats from 2005 to 2008.

Stephen was elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999. Following the coalition agreement between the Scottish Liberal Democrats and Scottish Labour, he became Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning. Later in the same parliamentary term he became Deputy Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs, and then for Education and Young People. Following the 2003 Scottish Parliament election, he joined the Scottish Executive cabinet as Minister for Transport.

In 2005, following the resignation of his predecessor Jim Wallace, Stephen was elected leader of the party and also became deputy first minister and Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning. He led his party into the 2007 election, where it won 16 seats (down one on 2003). He resigned as party leader on 2 July 2008, triggering a leadership election. In 2011 he joined the House of Lords. He became a patron of The Aberdeen Law Project in 2011.