SNP minister Christina McKelvie dies aged 57

Scottish government minister Christina McKelvie has died aged 57, the SNP has announced.

McKelvie, the drugs and alcohol policy minister, stepped back from her duties last summer after announcing she was undergoing treatment for secondary breast cancer.

She died at Glasgow Royal Infirmary on Thursday morning.

McKelvie's partner and SNP depute leader Keith Brown said she was a beloved mother to two sons and a partner and grandmother who "lit up every room she was in with her positivity and bright smile".

McKelvie had been MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse since May 2011, having initially been elected as a Central Scotland representative in 2007.

She recovered from breast cancer in 2021 but was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer in June.

First Minister John Swinney said he was "devastated" by the news, describing McKelvie as "one of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met in my life".

"The Scottish National Party has lost one of its finest, and I have lost an outstanding minister in my government. I know her loss will be felt right across the parliament and among the countless constituents she supported over the years."

McKelvie was equalities minister between 2008 to 2023. She then served as minister for culture, Europe and international development before moving to the drugs and alcohol brief from 2024.

Originally from Easterhouse in Glasgow, she was a social worker in the city before moving into politics. She was also a long-standing member of the SNP and a trade unionist with Unison.

Swinney said: "Christina was fiercely proud of her Easterhouse roots, and she often spoke of how injustices her family experienced in her childhood had inspired her to join the trade union movement and enter elected politics."

He added: "Christina was such a big-hearted woman, with compassion and social justice at her core. Her political allies and opponents would agree - she truly was a force of nature."

Brown said the family was "immensely proud of all Christina achieved". He cited her support for cancer charities, people with motor neurone disease and domestic abuse victims.

Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon described McKelvie as "kind, loyal, compassionate and full of life", adding: "She had the biggest heart of anyone I have ever known."

A period of silence was held in the Holyrood chamber, while the parliament's flags have been flown at half mast.

Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone, who led emotional tributes to McKelvie in the chamber, described her as a "dear parliamentary colleague".