WikiMini

Carol Mochan

Carol Mochan
MSP
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for South Scotland
(1 of 7 Regional MSPs)
Incumbent
Assumed office
8 May 2021
Shadow Minister for Mental Wellbeing, Women's Health and Sport
Incumbent
Assumed office
31 May 2021
Personal details
Political partyScottish Labour

Carol Mochan is a Scottish Labour politician. She has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the South Scotland region since the election in May 2021.

Background

[edit]

Mochan grew up in Ayrshire, attending Girvan Primary School and Auchinleck Academy. She worked in the NHS as a dietician for 17 years and during this time built up a wealth of experience around the needs of people and the extent of inequality within society. She is a lifelong dedicated and active trade union member. She lives in Mauchline, Ayrshire, running a small family business. Before her election to the Scottish Parliament she was active in many roles within the community: a member of the community council and community association, chair of a parent led toddler group, and part of the school parent council.

Political career

[edit]

Mochan has served as Chair of the Carrick Cumnock and Doon Valley Constituency Labour Party.

At the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, Mochan was the Labour candidate in Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, taking second place with 8,684 votes (27.4%).[1]

Mochan stood in the 2017 East Ayrshire Council election, as the running mate to incumbent councillor Billy Crawford in the Cumnock and New Cumnock ward. She took 295 first-preference votes (6.6%), being eliminated on the sixth count.[2][3]

At the 2017 general election, Mochan stood in Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock, where she finished third with 11,024 votes (23.9%).[4][5]

Member of the Scottish Parliament

[edit]

Mochan ran again in Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley at the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.[6]During the election campaign, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar appointed Mochan as the party's mental health spokesperson.[7][8] In the constituency, she finished third with a decreased vote share of 24.2%.[9] Mochan was instead elected as one of the party's three regional MSPs for South Scotland.[10] Shortly after her election, Mochan was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Minister for Mental Wellbeing, Women's Health and Sport.[11]

She was one of only two Labour MSPs to vote against the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. [12]

Mochan was one of 5 Labour MSPs who was absent for a Scottish Parliament vote calling for the UK Government to reverse its decision to means-test the Winter Fuel Payment.[13]

Personal life

[edit]

She is married and has two children.[14] Mochan identifies as a socialist and a feminist.[15]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley - Scottish Parliament constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  2. ^ "Election results - Ward 8 - Cumnock and New Cumnock" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Local Elections Archive Project - Cumnock and New Cumnock". Local Elections Archive Project. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  4. ^ "Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock general election - June 2017". UK Parliament. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  5. ^ "General Election Results 2017 - Seat: Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock". The Scotsman. 13 June 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  6. ^ "Carol Mochan for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley in the Scottish Parliament elections (Constituencies)". Who Can I Vote For? by Democracy Club. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  7. ^ Behan, Paul (1 March 2021). "New Scottish Labour Leader appoints Ayrshire candidate to key role". InYourArea.co.uk. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  8. ^ Boyle, Fionnuala (10 March 2021). "Anas Sarwar appoints Carol Mochan as Mental Health Spokesperson". Cumnock Chronicle. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Carrick, Cumnock & Doon Valley - Scottish Parliament constituency - BBC News". BBC News. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  10. ^ "South of Scotland". BBC News. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  11. ^ Davidson, Peter (31 May 2021). "Scottish Labour announce shadow team as Anas Sarwar focuses on national recovery". Daily Record. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Scottish Government loses legal challenge to Westminster veto of Gender Recognition Reform Bill". Holyrood Website. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  13. ^ Hutcheon, Paul (9 October 2024). "Winter Fuel Payment rebel breaks silence on why he defied Anas Sarwar". Daily Record. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  14. ^ Aitken, Mark (16 May 2021). "As a large batch of MSPs with young children settles in for new parliament, we ask how easy it is to juggle life as a politician and a parent". The Sunday Post. DC Thomson Media. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  15. ^ Mochan, Carol [@CMochan] (22 December 2022). "Unfortunately as a socialist and a feminist I had no option but to vote against the Gender Recognition Reform Bill today. I supported it at Stage 1 as like so many others I agree this process should be reformed" (Tweet). Retrieved 22 December 2022 – via Twitter.
[edit]


Stub icon

This article about a member of the Scottish Parliament is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.