Mike Crockart
A Scottish Liberal Democrat MP who represented Edinburgh West during a pivotal period of coalition government in the UK.
Born 1966 (age 60)·British politician·Birthday: March 19·Generation X
Biography
Mike Crockart unseated a sitting Labour minister to win the Edinburgh West seat for the Liberal Democrats in the 2010 general election. His five-year term coincided with the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, a period of austerity and constitutional debate. As a backbencher, he served on the Scottish Affairs Committee and focused on issues like fuel poverty and digital infrastructure. The 2015 election proved a devastating night for his party across the UK, and he lost his seat to the Scottish National Party. His time in Westminster captured the rise and sharp contraction of Liberal Democrat influence during a turbulent decade.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Mike was born in 1966, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Mike Was Born
The biggest hits of 1966
#1 Movie
The Bible: In the Beginning
Best Picture
A Man for All Seasons
#1 TV Show
Bonanza
Mike's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1966Born
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1971Started school
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1979Became a teenager
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Could drive
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1984Could vote
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1987Turned 21
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1996Turned 30
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 40
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 50
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 60
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the Member of Parliament for Edinburgh West from 2010 to 2015.
- Elected in the 2010 general election, unseating the sitting Labour MP John Barrett.
- Served on the Scottish Affairs Select Committee during his term in Parliament.
- Was the Liberal Democrat Shadow Minister for Scotland in 2014.
Did You Know?
Before entering politics, he had a career in the financial services technology sector.
He was a vocal campaigner against the proposed closure of the RAF base at Leuchars Station in Fife during his time as an MP.
His election win in 2010 was part of a surge that gave the Liberal Democrats 57 seats, their highest total since 1923.
He studied at the University of Edinburgh.
“My focus was on the practical work of a constituency, not the theatre of Westminster.”
