Born in Birkenhead and educated at Wrekin College before obtaining degrees from St Andrew’s University in Dundee and Strathclyde, Malcolm obtained a variety of experience before being returned to Parliament. As well as being a journalist, he was a buyer for Boots, a researcher at the North East Scotland Development Agency before establishing Aberdeen Petroleum Publishing. Malcolm was called to the Bar (Gray’s Inn) in 1995.

Malcolm Bruce held the parliamentary seat of Gordon from 1983, until he stood down as an MP at the General Election in May 2015. He was appointed as a member of the House of Lords in August 2015.

During the years he spent in the House of Commons, Malcolm had a number of Liberal Democrat front-bench positions including on Treasury, Energy, Rural Affairs, Trade and Industry and Scotland.

For ten years from 2005 to 2015, he was the Chair of the Parliamentary Select Committee on International Development, challenging the Government on a range of development issues including: conflict and peace-building, violence against women and girls, water and sanitation, HIV/AIDS, poverty eradication and arms export controls.

During his time as a local MP he raised with Government and in Parliament issues relating to Oil and Gas safety, taxation and skills, local transport and infrastructure, health, policing and education issues as well as the devolution of powers to the Scottish Parliament.

He participated in the Scottish Constitutional Convention (SCC) which developed the framework for Scottish devolution and which paved the way for the establishment of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

Malcolm also established the All Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness and took a keen interest in the energy, transport and climate change parliamentary groups.

He served as the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats between 1988 and 1992, and President of the Scottish Party. He served as the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Party from 2014-15.

He is married to Rosemary and has five children.