Funeral For Former MSP Tom McCabe

The funeral of a former Labour MSP who died at the age of 60 will take place today.

Tom McCabe represented Hamilton South between 1999 and 2011. He also served for a time as finance minister.

His constituency was the first to declare just over an hour after polls closed at the historic 1999 Scottish Parliament election, giving him a place in Scottish political history as the first-ever MSP.

Mr McCabe died at home after a short illness, with his death announced on Sunday.

His funeral will take place at St Mary's Church in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, today.

Several senior Labour figures including Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy and deputy leader Kezia Dugdale are expected to attend.

During his time in parliament, Mr McCabe also had spells as minister for parliamentary business and deputy minister for health and community care but lost his seat as the SNP swept to power in 2011.

Tributes flooded in after his death, with Mr Murphy saying he will be ''hugely missed''.

Mr Murphy said: ''That he has died at such a relatively young age and with so much still to give makes it harder to understand and accept.

''Tom McCabe was a good man. He was a dedicated servant of the Labour movement and was a radical finance minister in the last Scottish Labour government.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: ''Tom had an impressive record of public service as an MSP and as a minister in the first post-devolution administration.

''He was someone who was widely liked across the political divide and will be remembered as such across Scottish politics.

My thoughts are with his wife and family.''

Many Labour politicians took to Twitter to offer their condolences and praise Mr McCabe's contribution.