Alex Salmond’s family pay tribute to ‘devoted & loving’ husband and say ‘life will never be the same again’
They said he would want them to 'continue with his life’s work for independence'
ALEX Salmond’s family have paid tribute to the “devoted and loving” politician after his death aged 69.
The former First Minister of Scotland leaves behind wife Moira, sisters Margaret and Gail, and brother Bob.
He is also survived by nieces and nephews Christina, Karen, Mark, Neil and Ian.
They said in a statement: “The family of Alex Salmond would like to extend our sincere thanks for the many hundreds of kind messages, calls and cards.
“Alex was a formidable politician, an amazing orator, an outstanding intellect, and admired throughout the world. He loved meeting people and hearing their stories, and showed incredible kindness to those who needed it.
“He dedicated his adult life to the cause he believed in – independence for Scotland. His vision and enthusiasm for Scotland and the Yes movement were both inspirational and contagious.
“But to us, first and foremost, he was a devoted and loving husband, a fiercely loyal brother, a proud and thoughtful uncle and a faithful and trusted friend.
“In our darkest of family moments, he was always the one who got us through, making this time even more difficult, as he is not here for us to turn to. His resilience and optimism knew no bounds.
“He led us to believe in better. Without Alex, life will never be the same again. But he would want us to continue with his life’s work for independence, and for justice, and that is what we shall do.
“The dream shall never die.”
The ex-SNP leader — who led Scotland to the brink of independence — passed away yesterday following a suspected heart attack while attending a summit in North Macedonia.
The political supremo, who led Scotland for seven years as FM, fell ill after having lunch at the conference as medics desperately fought to save his life.
Figures from across Scotland and the political world paid tribute to the Alba Party leader following his tragic death.
King Charles, John Swinney and Sir Keir Starmer led tributes to the political heavyweight.
Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon paid tribute to Alex Salmond, calling him her “mentor”.
The pair were close political allies for several decades but had a major falling out after allegations of sexual harassment were made against Mr Salmond in 2018.
Alex Salmond leaves a legacy as one of the biggest figures in UK politics, spending decades in public service.
In one of his final interviews, he revealed one of his biggest regrets of his political career.
He made the admission while speaking to The Scottish Sun about last month’s tenth anniversary of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.
Alex Salmond was still going at 110mph - he never gave up
BY CHRIS MUSSON, Associate Editor (Politics)
ALEX Salmond was still going at 110mph, right until the very end.
I last saw him a month ago when he came into the Scottish Sun offices for an interview to mark a decade since the independence referendum.
He was utterly bullish, as ever. Determined, incisive, funny, pugnacious.
He was as sharp as a tack. A man still following every last twist and turn of politics, in Scotland and beyond.
When I started my weekly column for the Scottish Sun earlier this year, I told readers I wanted to hear from them.
Salmond was the first person to email me after my debut piece, which had been about the past decade of “madness”, as I put it, and how it had been unhealthy for Scotland “I don’t fully agree with your analysis,” Salmond told me. I’ll take that, I thought.
But that interview we did just over a month ago was a walk in the park for Salmond.
Nothing got past him, and he was prepared for every question I put to him. He even had a plug ready for his 2026 Holyrood election strategy.
The interview was on camera and as a final question, I asked if he’d retire if failed to win a seat in two years’ time.
His response was first-class – not quite giving a straight answer, but colourful enough to draw a line under the issue.
“Oh, I intend to lead Alba into the Scottish Parliament in 2026. That’s my full intention,” he said.
“And if that doesn’t work, then I’ll probably go back to grabbing the family season ticket at Tynecastle, and hope by then we’re in a vein of form.”
After he ended, he delivered a signature chortle, then held a smile for the camera until we cut.
We exchanged gossip afterwards and as I walked him to reception he quipped “I hope you got some of what you wanted, there.”
Clocking the security guard had recognised him, he made a beeline for the guy, shook his hand and said a quick hello.
After Salmond gone, I said to the security guard: “You a fan?”
“Nah – not my politics,” he said, but added: “He seems a nice chap, though.”
And that was Salmond through and through. He liked to be liked, and – in his heyday, especially – he was great at it.
I remember thinking as he left: What a pro.
I also remember thinking that he did not look well. He was struggling with his walking, and had put on a lot of weight in recent years.
But he just kept going. He still had much to prove, after a decade of enormous upheaval for him.
Salmond thrived on popularity. He was a political animal – but wounded, damaged beyond repair, I think, by the infamous allegations against him and his own, self-confessed shortcomings.
People would often ask: Why doesn’t he just retire? But, that just wasn’t him. He would have to be made to stop.
Salmond still felt he had scores to settle – with the Scottish Government, with his foes in the SNP.
He so desperately wanted to get out from under that cloud that’s hung over him in recent years. To regain that popularity he once had.
That won’t happen now, of course. The fight is over for Salmond. But say what you want about him – he never gave up.