Former deputy prime minister Nicol Stephen will quit Holyrood

By The Newsroom

Published 24th Sep 2010, 23:12 BST

Updated 25th Sep 2010, 21:06 BST

FORMER deputy first minister Nicol Stephen will leave Holyrood at the election in May, he announced yesterday.

The Aberdeen South MSP has enjoyed 28 years in politics, which saw him rise from being a councillor to leader of the Liberal Democrats in Scotland.

Stephen, 50, has served his constituency since 1999. He is the latest high-profile MSP to announce his departure from Holyrood following his former coalition partner Lord McConnell, another Labour peer Lord Foulkes and his Lib Dem colleague Jamie Stone.