# Adam Tomkins > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Adam_Tomkins > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Adam_Tomkins.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Tomkins > Source revision: 1348140837 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|British academic and politician (born 1969)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}} {{Use British English|date=February 2018}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Adam Tomkins | honorific_suffix = | image = File:Adam Tomkins MSP.jpg | image_size = 200px | caption = Tomkins in 2016 | office = [Member of the Scottish Parliament](/source/Member_of_the_Scottish_Parliament)
for [Glasgow](/source/Glasgow_(Scottish_Parliament_electoral_region))
{{nobold|(1 of 7 Regional MSPs)}} | term_start = 5 May 2016 | term_end = 5 May 2021 | predecessor = | successor = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1969|6|28|df=yes}} | birth_place = [Berkshire](/source/Berkshire), [England](/source/England), [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) | death_date = | death_place = | birth_name = | party = [Scottish Conservatives](/source/Scottish_Conservatives) | spouse = Lauren Apfel | relations = | children = 4 | alma_mater = [University of East Anglia](/source/University_of_East_Anglia) ([LL.B.](/source/LL.B.))
[London School of Economics](/source/London_School_of_Economics) ([LL.M.](/source/LL.M.)) | occupation = | profession = Legal scholar | cabinet = | committees = | signature = | website = | footnotes = }} '''Adam Tomkins''' (born 28 June 1969) is a British academic and politician who is the [John Millar Professor of Public Law](/source/John_Millar_Professor_of_Law) at the [University of Glasgow School of Law](/source/University_of_Glasgow_School_of_Law). A member of the [Scottish Conservatives](/source/Scottish_Conservatives), he was a [Member of the Scottish Parliament](/source/Member_of_the_Scottish_Parliament) (MSP) for the [Glasgow](/source/Glasgow_(Scottish_Parliament_electoral_region)) region from [2016](/source/2016_Scottish_Parliament_election) to 2021, when he stood down for that year's elections. Previously a constitutional advisor to the [House of Lords](/source/House_of_Lords) [Constitution Committee](/source/Constitution_Committee), he was made constitutional advisor to the [Scotland Office](/source/Scotland_Office) and [Secretary of State for Scotland](/source/Secretary_of_State_for_Scotland) [David Mundell](/source/David_Mundell) in 2015. He was the Convener of the [Justice Committee](/source/Justice_Committee), having previously held the portfolio of strategy, communities, social security, the constitution and equalities. ==Academia== Tomkins was educated at [Gillingham School](/source/Gillingham_School), the [University of East Anglia](/source/University_of_East_Anglia) ([LL.B.](/source/Bachelor_of_Laws), 1990) and the [London School of Economics](/source/London_School_of_Economics) ([LL.M.](/source/Master_of_Laws), 1991).{{cite web | title=oxford INTELLECT: Adam Tomkins | url=http://www.oxfordintellect.com/faculty_tomkins.html | publisher=[University of Oxford](/source/University_of_Oxford) | access-date=2009-05-31 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130205051206/http://www.oxfordintellect.com/faculty_tomkins.html | archive-date=5 February 2013 | url-status=dead }} He taught at the School of Law of [King's College London](/source/King's_College_London) between 1991 and 2000 and became a [fellow](/source/fellow) at [St Catherine's College](/source/St_Catherine's_College%2C_Oxford), [Oxford](/source/University_of_Oxford) in 2000, before being elected to the John Millar Chair of Law at Glasgow in 2003.{{cite web | title=University of Glasgow :: School of Law :: Adam Tomkins | url=http://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/law/staff/adamtomkins/#/biography| publisher=[University of Glasgow School of Law](/source/University_of_Glasgow_School_of_Law) | access-date=2009-05-31}} His research interests lie in constitutional theory and history, British, EU and comparative constitutional law. Tomkins has published seven books in the areas of [constitutional](/source/constitutional_law), [administrative](/source/administrative_law) and [European Union](/source/Law_of_the_European_Union) law, including two, ''Public Law'' (2003) and ''British Government and the Constitution'' (2007, with Colin Turpin), which are amongst the most widely used by law students in the United Kingdom.{{cite web | title=Ampersand Academics – Professor Adam Tomkins | url=http://www.ampersandstable.com/evoke/who/Professor-Adam-Tomkins/view | publisher=Ampersand Advocates | access-date=2015-10-30 }}{{Dead link|date=June 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Tomkins has held visiting appointments at the Universities of [Toronto](/source/University_of_Toronto), [Queensland](/source/University_of_Queensland) and [New South Wales](/source/University_of_New_South_Wales) and the [Australian National University](/source/Australian_National_University), and has lectured throughout the world. In April 2009, Tomkins became associated with Ampersand, a stable at the [Faculty of Advocates](/source/Faculty_of_Advocates), as part of its ''Ampersand Academics'' link between practitioners and academics. Professor Douglas Brodie, former head of the [School of Law](/source/University_of_Edinburgh_School_of_Law) at the [University of Edinburgh](/source/University_of_Edinburgh), has also joined this project. In 2009 he was appointed legal adviser to the [House of Lords](/source/House_of_Lords) [Constitution Committee](/source/Constitution_Committee_(House_of_Lords)). He was elected a Fellow of the [Royal Society of Edinburgh](/source/Royal_Society_of_Edinburgh) in 2014.{{Cite news|url=https://www.rse.org.uk/fellow/adam-tomkins/|title=Professor Adam Tomkins FRSE, MSP – The Royal Society of Edinburgh|work=The Royal Society of Edinburgh|access-date=2018-02-09|language=en-GB}} ==Politics== During the 2014 Scottish [independence referendum](/source/2014_Scottish_independence_referendum), Tomkins was a leading unionist campaigner.{{cite news|last1=Duffy|first1=Judith|title=I am being forced to choose ... would I want to stay in an independent Scotland as a No voter?|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13170868._I_am_being_forced_to_choose_____would_I_want_to_stay_in_an_independent_Scotland_as_a_No_voter__/|access-date=29 October 2015|publisher=HeraldScotland}} After the referendum Tomkins was one of two [Scottish Conservative](/source/Scottish_Conservative) representatives appointed to the [Smith Commission](/source/Smith_Commission). He has also been appointed as unpaid adviser to [Secretary of State for Scotland](/source/Secretary_of_State_for_Scotland) [David Mundell](/source/David_Mundell) during the passage of the [Scotland Bill](/source/Scotland_Bill_2015%E2%80%9316) through parliament.{{cite web|title=Constitutional expert appointed as Mundell adviser|url=http://www.scottishlegal.com/2015/05/26/constitutional-expert-appointed-as-mundell-adviser/|website=Scottish Legal News|publisher=ScottishLegal.Com|access-date=29 October 2015|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304095317/http://www.scottishlegal.com/2015/05/26/constitutional-expert-appointed-as-mundell-adviser/|url-status=dead}} In August 2015, Tomkins announced his intention to stand as a [Member of the Scottish Parliament](/source/Member_of_the_Scottish_Parliament) for the [Scottish Conservatives](/source/Scottish_Conservative_Party) in the [2016 election](/source/2016_Scottish_Parliament_election). In a blog explaining his decision, he was highly critical of the [Scottish National Party](/source/Scottish_National_Party)'s actions in [government](/source/government_of_the_4th_Scottish_Parliament) at [Holyrood](/source/Scottish_Parliament), and praised many policies of the [Conservative government](/source/Premiership_of_David_Cameron) at [Westminster](/source/Parliament_of_the_United_Kingdom).{{cite web|url=https://notesfromnorthbritain.wordpress.com/2015/08/28/i-am-seeking-election-to-the-scottish-parliament-heres-why/|title=I am seeking election to the Scottish Parliament: here's why|first=Prof Adam|last=Tomkins|date=28 August 2015|publisher=}} He was elected a list member of the [Scottish Parliament](/source/Scottish_Parliament) for [the Glasgow Region](/source/Glasgow_(Scottish_Parliament_electoral_region)) in the [2016 Scottish Parliament election](/source/2016_Scottish_Parliament_election).{{cite news|title=Nicola Sturgeon celebrates third term as Tories head for second place|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/nicola-sturgeon-celebrates-third-term-as-tories-head-for-second-place-34690207.html|website=[Belfast Telegraph](/source/Belfast_Telegraph)|access-date=6 May 2016}} He previously sat on the Finance Committee and the Social Security Committee in the Scottish Parliament and then served as the Justice Committee convener. Between 2016 and August 2020, he served on the Scottish Conservatives [Shadow Cabinet](/source/Shadow_Cabinet).{{cite web|title=Adam Tomkins MSP|url=http://www.parliament.scot/msps/currentmsps/adam-tomkins-msp.aspx|website=Scottish Parliament|access-date=4 July 2016}}{{cite web|title=Scottish Conservative appointments for new parliamentary term|url=http://www.scottishconservatives.com/2016/05/scottish-conservative-appointments-for-new-parliamentary-term/|website=Scottish Conservative Party|date=26 May 2016|access-date=26 May 2016|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327145903/http://www.scottishconservatives.com/2016/05/scottish-conservative-appointments-for-new-parliamentary-term/|url-status=dead}} On 17 July 2020, Tomkins released a statement announcing his intention to stand down as an MSP at the next election due in May 2021 for personal reasons related to work and family.{{cite news |title=Holyrood 2021 election: Which MSPs are standing down? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-53903780 |access-date=25 April 2021 |work=BBC News |agency=BBC |date=7 April 2021}} In April 2021, Tomkins wrote an article in ''[The Spectator](/source/The_Spectator)'' calling for a new law to define when constituent nations of the United Kingdom could hold independence referendums.{{cite news |last1=Tomkins |first1=Adam |title=Why we need a new Act of Union — and what to put in it |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-we-need-a-new-act-of-union-and-what-to-put-in-it |access-date=25 April 2021 |work=www.spectator.co.uk |date=20 April 2021}} The call was criticised by the Scottish Greens and SNP.{{cite news |last1=Cochrane |first1=Angus |title=Tory MSP says Scotland should be legally forced to stay in the Union |url=https://www.thenational.scot/news/19249360.tory-msp-says-scotland-legally-forced-stay-union/ |access-date=25 April 2021 |work=The National |agency=Newsquest Media Group |publisher=Herald and Times Group |date=21 April 2021 |language=en}} In 2022, following the [mini-budget](/source/September_2022_United_Kingdom_mini-budget) of [Liz Truss](/source/Liz_Truss) and [Kwasi Kwarteng](/source/Kwasi_Kwarteng), Tomkins said it was "inevitable" that the Conservatives would lose next election.{{Cite web |last=Gilmour |first=Lauren |date=28 September 2022 |title=Inevitable Conservatives will lose next election, says former Tory MSP - Adam Tomkins who was a Tory MSP between 2016 and 2021 said it was time for the party to be in opposition after this week's economic turmoil. |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/conservatives-labour-glasgow-government-bbc-b2177558.html |website=The Independent}} In August 2024, Tomkins revealed to journalists [Bernard Ponsonby](/source/Bernard_Ponsonby) and [Alex Massie](/source/Alex_Massie_(journalist)), that he had voted for the [Labour Party](/source/Labour_Party_(UK)) in the [2024 United Kingdom general election](/source/2024_United_Kingdom_general_election), opting to support [Scottish Labour](/source/Scottish_Labour) candidate [Blair McDougall](/source/Blair_McDougall) in [East Renfrewshire](/source/East_Renfrewshire_(UK_Parliament_constituency)).{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehywTmK_jes |title=I VOTED LABOUR - Former Tory MSP, Prof Adam Tomkins |date=2024-08-11 |last=The Ponsonby & Massie Podcast |access-date=2024-08-12 |via=YouTube}} ==Works== From [British Library](/source/British_Library) catalogue (Accessed October 2015). * ''Understanding human rights''. (1996, London: Mansell edited by [Conor Gearty](/source/Conor_Gearty) and Adam Tomkins) * ''The constitution after Scott: government unwrapped'' (1998) * ''Devolution and the British constitution'' (1998) * ''Sceptical essays on human right'' (2001: edited by [Tom Campbell](/source/Tom_Campbell_(philosopher)), [K.D. Ewing](/source/Keith_Ewing), and Adam Tomkins) * ''Public Law'' (2003) * ''Our Republican constitution'' (2005) * ''How We Should Rule Ourselves'' (2005: [Alasdair Gray](/source/Alasdair_Gray), Adam Tomkins) * ''The executive and public law : power and accountability in comparative perspective'' (2006: edited by [Paul Craig](/source/Paul_Craig_(law_professor)) and Adam Tomkins) * ''European Union public law : text and materials'' (2007: Damian Chalmers, Adam Tomkins) * ''British government and the constitution: text and materials'' (2011: Colin Turpin, Adam Tomkins) * ''The legal protection of human rights : sceptical essays'' (2011: edited by [Tom Campbell](/source/Tom_Campbell_(philosopher)), [K.D. Ewing](/source/Keith_Ewing) and Adam Tomkins) ==References== {{Reflist}} == External links == * {{SP-MSP}} {{Former Conservative MSPs|state=collapsed}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomkins, Adam}} Category:1969 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of the University of East Anglia Category:Alumni of the London School of Economics Category:Conservative MSPs Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 2016–2021 Category:Academics of the University of Glasgow Category:Academics of King's College London Category:Fellows of St Catherine's College, Oxford Category:British legal scholars Category:Scholars of constitutional law Category:Legal scholars of the University of Oxford Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Category:British legal writers --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Adam Tomkins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Tomkins) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Tomkins?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.