Margo MacDonald died on 4 April 2014 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease, prompting tributes across Scottish politics.
On 4 April 2014, Margo MacDonald died at the age of 70 following a long and public battle with Parkinson's disease, a condition she had lived with for over a decade while continuing to serve as a Member of the Scottish Parliament.
Her death prompted an outpouring of tributes from across the Scottish political spectrum, reflecting the immense respect she commanded as an independent voice unafraid to challenge party lines, including those of the Scottish National Party she had once helped lead. Then First Minister Alex Salmond and leaders of all major Scottish parties paid tribute to her courage, wit, and decades of parliamentary service.
MacDonald had continued to campaign for causes close to her heart until near the end of her life, most notably her private member's bill on assisted dying, reflecting her own experience of terminal illness. Her death was widely covered by major outlets including the BBC, The Guardian, and Al Jazeera, underscoring her stature not just in Scotland but as a recognised figure in British political life.
Her legacy as a fearless, independent-minded politician — the only member ever elected to the Scottish Parliament as an independent on two separate occasions — endures in Scottish political memory as an example of principled, non-partisan public service.