Willie Rennie

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Willie Rennie MSP
Official portrait, 2016
Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats
In office 17 May 2011 – 20 July 2021
Deputy	Jo Swinson Alistair Carmichael
Leader	Sir Nick Clegg Tim Farron Sir Vince Cable Jo Swinson Sir Ed Davey
Preceded by	Tavish Scott
Succeeded by	Alex Cole-Hamilton[a]
Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Scotland
In office 21 August 2019 – 6 January 2020 Serving with Jamie Stone
Leader	Jo Swinson Sir Ed Davey & Brinton/Pack
Preceded by	Christine Jardine
Succeeded by	Wendy Chamberlain
Member of the Scottish Parliament for North East Fife
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 May 2016
Preceded by	Roderick Campbell
Majority	7,448 (18.5%)
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Mid Scotland and Fife
In office 5 May 2011 – 24 March 2016
Preceded by	Ted Brocklebank
Succeeded by	Alexander Stewart
Member of Parliament for Dunfermline and West Fife
In office 9 February 2006 – 12 April 2010
Preceded by	Rachel Squire
Succeeded by	Thomas Docherty
Personal details
Born	William Cowan Rennie (1967-09-27) 27 September 1967 (age 57) Fife, Scotland
Political party	Scottish Liberal Democrats
Spouse	Janet Rennie (1992–present)
Children	2 sons
Alma mater	Paisley College of Technology City of Glasgow College

William Cowan Rennie (born 27 September 1967) is a Scottish politician who served as the Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats from 2011 to 2021. He has served as the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for North East Fife since 2016, and previously as a list MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife (from 2011 to 2016) and as Member of Parliament (MP) for Dunfermline and West Fife (from 2006 to 2010).

After college, Rennie was a Liberal Democrat election campaigner and official before working as a public relations consultant in the private sector. He became the MP for Dunfermline and West Fife following a by-election win in February 2006. He later lost this seat to the Labour Party at the 2010 general election. He briefly served as a Special Government Adviser for the Liberal Democrat Scottish Secretaries of State Danny Alexander and Michael Moore at the Scotland Office.^[1]

He was then elected to the Scottish Parliament in the May 2011 election. He was elected as an additional member for the Mid Scotland and Fife region.^[2] He was soon after elected unopposed as leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, replacing Tavish Scott. At the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, Rennie was elected MSP for the constituency seat of North East Fife. Rennie was re-elected in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, but resigned as Lib Dem leader two months later and was replaced by Alex Cole-Hamilton.

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