Dr Pam (Permjit) Gosal (born 25 April 1972) is a

Scottish Conservative The Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party (), known as Scottish Tories, is part of the UK Conservative Party active in Scotland. It currently holds 5 of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons, 30 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Par ...

politician who has been a

Member of the Scottish Parliament Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP; ; ) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament. Electoral system The additional member system produces a form of proportional representation, where ...

(MSP) for West Scotland since May 2021. She is one of the first women of colour elected to the Scottish parliament and is also the first woman of

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

descent and

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

to serve as an elected member of the Scottish Parliament.

Background

Pam Gosal was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland. She helped run her family business before working in Local Government prior to being elected to the Scottish Parliament.

Political career

Gosal stood in

East Dunbartonshire East Dunbartonshire (; , ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders Glasgow City Council Area to the south, North Lanarkshire to the east, Stirling (council area), Stirling to the north, and West Dunbartonshire to the west. East ...

at the

2019 United Kingdom general election The 2019 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 12 December 2019, with 47,074,800 registered voters entitled to vote to elect 650 Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons of the Un ...

and came in third place. She ran in the

2021 Scottish Parliament election The 2021 Scottish Parliament election took place on 6 May 2021 under the provisions of the Scotland Act 1998. It was the sixth Scottish Parliament election since the parliament was re-established in 1999. 129 Member of the Scottish Parliament, ...

as the Conservative candidate for Clydebank and Milngavie and West Scotland. Gosal finished third in the Clydebank and Milngavie seat, but she was elected as a

(MSP) for West Scotland. She is the first Sikh and first woman of Indian background to be elected as an MSP to the Scottish Parliament. On 13 May 2021, Gosal and Stewart were sworn in as the first minority female MSPs. She took her oath in

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

as well as English. She was appointed the role of Shadow Minister for Higher Education and Further Education, Youth Employment and Training in the Scottish Conservative Shadow Cabinet. In June 2023, she was appointed Deputy Chairwoman of the Scottish Conservatives and Deputy Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government. Gosal was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the

2024 New Year Honours The 2024 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hono ...

for services to business, to racial equality and to charity in Milton Keynes. In September 2024, when Russell Findlay became the new leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Gosal was re-appointed as Deputy Chairwoman of the Scottish Conservatives and was made Shadow Minister for Investment and Employment. Gosal is also a domestic abuse campaigner. Growing up, she was witness to many victims of domestic abuse seeking refuge in safe spaces and is currently driving a Members’ Bill, the Prevention of Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill, through the Scottish Parliament. The Bill would introduce a number of measures, including a register for culprits similar to the sex offenders’ register. Gosal is the founder and chair of the Scottish Conservative friends of BAME (SCBAME), the first umbrella organisation affiliated with the Scottish Conservative Party to reach out to BAME communities in Scotland. Gosal also successfully set up the first ever Cross-Party Parliamentary Group on India in 2021 and is Convener of the group, which aims to improve relationships in the areas of education, trade and culture between India and Scotland. In March 2025, the Cross-Party Group on facilitated the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Scottish Federation of Enterprise and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) in the Scottish Parliament.

Political opinions

Gosal also expressed opposition to LGBT Youth Scotland visiting primary schools in East Dunbartonshire, writing a letter to the CEO of the East Dunbartonshire council to protest what she described as "not age-appropriate but also trans ideology" and "deeply disturbing for young children."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gosal, Pam 1972 births Living people Scottish Sikhs People from East Dunbartonshire Politicians from Glasgow Scottish people of Indian descent Conservative MSPs Members of the Scottish Parliament 2021–2026 Female members of the Scottish Parliament Scottish Conservative parliamentary candidates Members of the Order of the British Empire

Background

Political career

Political opinions

See also

References

External links