Former Edinburgh MP, Scottish Office minister and Tory deputy leader Michael Ancram dies aged 79

He was MP for Edinburgh South for 18 years, first winning the seat in 1979 when he defeated future Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who was standing in his first parliamentary election.

After losing the seat in 1987, Mr Ancram - later Lord Lothian - transferred 385 miles south to become MP for Devizes in Wiltshire from 1992 until he retired in 2010.

Michael Ancram, former Tory MP for Edinburgh South, has died at the age of 79 | Getty Images

Born in July 1945, just as the Second World War was ending, he was educated at Ampleforth College, a prestigious Catholic boarding school, and Oxford, then studied law at Edinburgh and became an advocate.

He stood unsuccessfully in West Lothian at the 1970 general election, then narrowly won Berwick and East Lothian in the February 1974 election but lost it again in the second 1974 election in October.

Just a year after being elected MP again in Edinburgh South, he became chairman of the Scottish Tories from 1980 until 1983, then served as Scottish Office minister in charge of home affairs.

Michael Ancram (left, back) as part of the Scottish Office team in September 1986. The others are: John Mackay, Lord Glenarthur, Scottish Secretary Malcolm Rifkind and Ian Lang. Picture: Jack Crombie. | TSPL

Later, he was a junior minister for Northern Ireland under John Major, served as chairman of the UK party from 1998 until 2001, then stood for the leadership against Iain Duncan Smith, Kenneth Clarke, Michael Portillo and David Davis. Eliminated early on, he then backed the eventual winner Iain Duncan Smith and became deputy leader and shadow foreign secretary, staying on in these posts when Michael Howard took over as leader in 2003.

He stood down from the shadow cabinet in 2005 and left the Commons in 2010. He died peacefully in hospital on Tuesday, surrounded by close family. He is survived by his wife Lady Jane Fitzalan-Howard, two daughters and several grandchildren.

His family said funeral arrangements would be announced in due course, with a private Requiem Mass in Scotland in the coming weeks, to be followed by a Service of Thanksgiving in London at a later date.

In a statement, they described him as “a stalwart of the Conservative Party and a respected figure in British politics, whose passing marks the end of a distinguished career spanning over five decades”.

The statement said: “Lord Lothian's aristocratic heritage, together with his personal humility and geniality, and his modern conservative values made him a unique figure in public life.”

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: “I am sorry to hear of the passing of Michael Ancram, who was a first-rate politician and a gentleman. The thoughts of all in the Scottish Conservatives are with his wife and family.”