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Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs)

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Sharon Dowey

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

MSP for South Scotland (Region) 2021 - present day

About Sharon Dowey

Contact details

Contact online

X (previously known as Twitter): @SharonDowey_

Facebook: Sharon's facebook

Contact at the Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament
Edinburgh
EH99 1SP

Phone: 0131 348 6980
Text relay calls welcome.

Contact at local office

18 Wellington Square
Ayr
KA7 1EZ

Phone: 01292 839130
Text relay calls welcome.

Committees

Sharon is a member of 1 committee

Cross-party groups

Sharon is a member of 15 cross-party groups

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Aviation

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Cancer

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Construction

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Culture and Communities

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Gardening and Horticulture

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on India

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Men's Violence Against Women and Children

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Music

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Recreational Boating and Marine Tourism

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Scottish Horseracing and Bloodstock Industries

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Skills

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Space

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Towns and Town Centres

Member

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Wood Panel Industry

Deputy Convener

Parliamentary and Government Roles

Sharon does not have any parliamentary or government roles

Party Roles

Sharon has 3 party roles

Deputy Chief Whip

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Community Safety

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Victims

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Previous roles

Sharon has had 9 previous roles

Previous roles in cross-party groups are not included in this list.

28 June 2023 - 08 October 2024

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Justice

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

01 September 2021 - 21 March 2024

Scottish Commission for Public Audit

Deputy Chair

23 June 2021 - 08 February 2024

Public Audit Committee

Deputy Convener

08 September 2021 - 29 June 2023

Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee

Substitute Member

20 May 2022 - 28 June 2023

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Culture

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

20 May 2022 - 28 June 2023

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Europe

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

20 May 2022 - 28 June 2023

Deputy Party Spokesperson on International Development

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

24 June 2021 - 01 September 2021

Scottish Commission for Public Audit

Member

17 June 2021 - 23 June 2021

Public Audit Committee

Member

Register of interests

Sharon's register of interests

MSPs must provide details of their financial interests in the Register of Interests. They make an initial statement on becoming or being returned as an MSP. This is then updated with any changes they provide.

Here is the register for Sharon Dowey. The date of their initial statement was 26 May 2021.

Remuneration and related undertaking

Until the election I was employed by William Morrison Supermarkets plc (a retailer of Kilwinning Road, Stevenston, KA20 3DE). I worked full time and received remuneration of between £45,001 and £50,000 a year. I handed in my notice on my election and am no longer employed by the company.

Gifts

On 20 September 2025, in my capacity as a member of the Cross Party Group on Horseracing and Bloodstock Industries, I attended the Ayr Gold Cup at Ayr Racecourse as a guest of Ladbrokes Coral Group plc (a betting and gambling company of 5th Floor, The Zig Zag Building, 70 Victoria Street, London, SW1E 6SQ). The value of the gift, which comprised a ticket and hospitality, was £375+vat. [Registered 23 September 2025]

Overseas visits

From 7 October to 13 October 2023 I visited Delhi, India, as part of a delegation of the Cross Party Group on India. The purpose of the visit was to engage with FinTech and Culture organisations and senior politicians within the Indian government. The total costs of the visit, including flights, hotel accommodation, food and transport, amounted to £2,402.16 and were paid by Amit Shah, Director of Flight Path Travel (a tour and travel agency which sells, flights, hotels and tour packages; Office No. 1, Jubilee Business Centre, 211 Kingsbury Road, Kingsbury, London, NW9 8AQ). [Registered 3 November 2023]

Controlled transactions

No registrable interests

Heritable property

I own a house in South Ayrshire with a market value of between £250,001 and £300,000. [Amended interest 5 April 2023]

Interest in shares

No registrable interests

Voluntary

No registrable interests

Recent Activity

What was said

What Sharon Dowey has said in Parliament

These are the official transcripts of what was said by this MSP in the chamber and at committee meetings. You'll find the topic discussed and how many times this MSP has contributed to the discussion.

Prison Estate (Sex Segregation)

Chamber meeting date: 28 January 2026

Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con): "I recently received a letter from Angela Constance, the justice secretary, in which she said two things: that the Scottish Government accepts the Supreme Court ruling and that the guidance for prisons “does not need to be changed…

Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Chamber meeting date: 27 January 2026

Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con): "On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I would have voted no."

Grooming Gangs

Chamber meeting date: 20 January 2026

Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con): "The serious organised crime task force has acknowledged that the scale of child sexual abuse and exploitation is hidden and underreported and that national monitoring is weak…

Tertiary Education and Training (Funding and Governance) (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

Chamber meeting date: 20 January 2026

Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con): "On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I would have voted yes."

Budget 2026-27

Chamber meeting date: 13 January 2026

Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con): "The Government has already disgracefully cut 1,000 police officers from Scotland’s streets. Police Scotland asked for £104 million simply to stand still and stop numbers falling further, yet the SNP budget delivers far less than that…

Votes

How Sharon Dowey has voted in Parliament

Find out how Sharon Dowey has voted recently.

Business Programme

Motion ref. S6M-20611.1

Submitted by: Ash Regan, Edinburgh Eastern, Independent. Date lodged: Thursday, January 29, 2026

Supported by: Jeremy Balfour, Sharon Dowey, Fergus Ewing, Dr Pam Gosal MBE, Rachael Hamilton, Liam Kerr, Stephen Kerr, Douglas Ross, Graham Simpson, Michelle Thomson, Tess White
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Thursday, January 29, 2026

Result 28 for, 83 against, 1 abstained, 17 did not vote

MSP voted for

Disagreed

Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill

Motion ref. S6M-20549

Submitted by: Gillian Martin, Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party. Date lodged: Monday, January 26, 2026

Supported by: Jim Fairlie, Mairi Gougeon
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Thursday, January 29, 2026

Result 90 for, 26 against, 0 abstained, 13 did not vote

MSP voted against

Agreed

Greyhound Racing (Offences) (Scotland) Bill

Motion ref. S6M-20527

Submitted by: Mark Ruskell, Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party. Date lodged: Thursday, January 22, 2026

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Thursday, January 29, 2026

Result 69 for, 27 against, 19 abstained, 14 did not vote

MSP voted against

Agreed

Motion ref. S6 SP Bill 59 Amendment 179

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Result 81 for, 25 against, 0 abstained, 23 did not vote

MSP voted for

Agreed

Motion ref. S6 SP Bill 59 Amendment 178

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Result 25 for, 81 against, 0 abstained, 23 did not vote

MSP voted for

Disagreed

Motions

Motions made by Sharon Dowey in Parliament

Find out what motions Sharon Dowey has submitted recently.

Questions

Questions Sharon Dowey has asked

These are the questions that this MSP has asked in Parliament. It also includes any answer to those questions.

Question reference: S6W-43469

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 29 January 2026

Current Status: Answer expected on 12 February 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government what factors have contributed to the reported increase in the number of prisoners subject to an Order for Lifelong Restriction living in the community on licence in recent years."

Question reference: S6O-05454

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 28 January 2026

Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 February 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recent report by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales showing that business confidence in Scotland has fallen for the sixth consecutive quarter and is lower than the UK average."

Question reference: S6W-42886

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 7 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to address the 8% increase in suspected drug deaths from January to September 2025, compared with the same period in 2024, as set out in its quarterly report, Suspected drug deaths in Scotland: July to September 2025."

Question reference: S6W-42885

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 7 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government to what extent it considers that any increases in NHS waiting times contributed to the 8% increase in suspected drug deaths from January to September 2025, compared with the same period in 2024, as set out in its quarterly report, Suspected drug deaths in Scotland: July to September 2025."

Question reference: S6W-42887

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 8 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 20 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government how it has been working with NHS boards to reduce A&E waiting times in order to meet the standard for 95% of all patients to be admitted, discharged or transferred within four hours of arrival, in light of recent Public Health Scotland statistics for the month ending 30 November 2025, which state that only 66.7%…

Question reference: S6W-42884

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 7 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government how many of the 63,867 domestic abuse incidents reported to the police in 2023-24 involved a repeat offender, and, if there are no available statistics on this, for what reason this information is not recorded."

Question reference: S6W-42797

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 5 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 15 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government whether issues relating to police officers being unable to retire due to pension buyback or pension scheme interaction issues were discussed at any governance, oversight or management group to which the Police Workforce, Diversity and Inquiry Sponsorship team reports during 2025."

Question reference: S6W-42796

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 5 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 15 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government whether issues relating to police officers being unable to retire due to pension buyback or pension scheme interaction issues were discussed by officials within the Police Workforce, Diversity and Inquiry Sponsorship team during 2025."

Question reference: S6W-42795

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 5 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 13 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any risks associated with police officers continuing in service after they would otherwise have been entitled to retire, as a result of unresolved pension issues."

Question reference: S6W-42798

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Date lodged: 5 January 2026

Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 13 January 2026

"To ask the Scottish Government whether its ministers were advised during 2025 that some police officers were unable to retire, despite meeting age or service thresholds, due to pension scheme interaction issues."

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