Pam Gosal becomes the First Indian Women to be elected to Scottish Parliament

By: WE Staff | Monday, 10 May 2021

Pam Gosal creates headlines, she's the first Indian woman elected to the Scottish parliament. Gosal was elected from West Scotland on a Conservative Party ticket.

Prior to being elected to the Scottish parliament, Gosal assisted her family's company before serving in local government.

In a tweet, Gosal said: “It’s a privilege to be the first female Member of Scotland Parliament from an Indian background. Thank you everyone, who’s supported me. Can’t wait to get to work for the people of West Scotland”.

She was born in Glasgow and has spent the majority of her life there. She has a BA, an MBA in Consumer Law, and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Consumer Law. She has always been a strong supporter of women, receiving the Women Leader Business Award in 2015 and the Public Service Award in 2018. She is the Deputy Chairwoman of the Scottish Conservative Women's Organisation.

She also serves on the board of directors of the Conservative Friends of India Scotland. The group aims to strengthen relations between the Conservative Party and Scotland's British Indian community. Gosal expressed optimism that her political career as a Scottish Conservative and Unionist spokesperson for British, Scottish, and BAM women will take new steps forward.

Ms Gosal, who previously stood in the 2019 General Election for the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party as a Parliamentary candidate for East Dunbartonshire, said: “It can take a long time for some people [to get into politics], I’ve got to be honest about my journey, I've only been in politics for one and a half years. And it's great that the Scottish Conservative Party started working with me right from the beginning identifying talent, through things like the group-led Conservative women’s organisation Women to Win. That was fast enough for myself, but I do agree that some ladies do go through maybe five or ten years. But what I would say is don’t give up.”

There are a number of female MSPs who have served in Holyrood for many years. Christine Grahame, the Mother of the House, is 76 years old, while Scottish Labour's Jackie Baillie has been an MSP since the Scottish Parliament's inception in 1999 and could be a valuable source of insight for the party's new leader, Anas Sarwar, who is hoping to turn around Labour's fortunes in Scotland in the next five years.

The Scottish Parliament is Scotland's unicameral devolved legislature. The Scottish Parliament is a democratically elected body made up of 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament who are elected for five-year terms using the additional member system.